Ryanair to pivot growth away from UK for next 2 years due to Brexit

[LONDON] Ryanair, Europe's largest airline by passenger numbers, plans to pivot its growth away from Britain over the next two years as the country negotiates its exit from the European Union, its finance director said on Thursday.

Neil Sorahan told reporters in London that the airline had planned to grow by about 15 per cent in the UK last year but had instead posted growth of about 6 per cent.

"Ryanair is pivoting its growth away from the UK," he said.

"We may see that growth slow down as we get closer to the divorce negotiations coming to an end, unless we get greater certainty as to what we actually can or cannot do within Europe."

Mr Sorahan said the airline also expected Brexit to hit growth in both Britain and the EU, as both parties have to deal with a completely new scenario, although they had not seen that come through yet.

"The only positive, I suppose, for our customers, is that this will lead to lower fares, as we have to stimulate the market," he said.

REUTERS