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Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary has called European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen "useless", accusing her of talking about competitiveness while doing nothing to deliver it.
In an interview with Euronews, O'Leary said "You have that ship of fools in the European parliament, redesigning more regulations designed to increase the cost of air travel when consumers want lower fares."
O’Leary attacked EU environmental taxes that apply only to flights within the bloc. American, Asian and Chinese carriers are exempt, even though he says they produce more than half of Europe’s aviation emissions.
'Tax the Americans'
"Nobody would design a stupid system like this, other than the European Parliament and Ursula von der Leyen. If you're serious about competitiveness, tax the Americans when they land here in Europe."
Long-haul routes, flown by European as well as American, Asian and Chinese airlines, fall under a lower UN carbon-offsetting scheme. According to air traffic body Eurocontrol, these flights make up just 6% of departures but more than half of European aviation’s CO2 emissions.
In July, the Commission proposed extending the EU’s levy to some flights leaving Europe from 2029.
Routes such as Frankfurt–Dubai and Frankfurt–Istanbul will be brought into the carbon market while longer sectors such as Frankfurt–Tokyo will be excluded, according to the Commission proposal. Landing flights from the United States and China will be exempt.
"Ursula von der Leyen’s afraid to do anything except talk. You know, she’s useless," O’Leary told the Europe Today programme. "Europe has a road map for being more competitive, it’s called the Draghi Report. Two years later, not one of its recommendations has been implemented and Ursula von der Leyen hides in the Berlaymont doing nothing except giving speeches."
He called for a "fair and reasonable" levy on every flight landing in or taking off from Europe.
Former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi published the report in September 2024. It warned the EU faced a "slow agony" without radical reform and called for up to €800 billion a year in extra investment.
Last month a report by the Joint European Disruptive Initiative said the bloc has implemented 26% of the recommendations outlined by Draghi and claimed "progress is real, but it is not in sync with the pace of the world."
'Belgium, France and Germany are not competitive'
O’Leary was in Brussels to announce Ryanair’s winter schedule. The airline is cutting a million seats and 20 routes from Belgium after Bart De Wever's government raised its air travel tax by €2 to €7 per ticket. That was scaled back from the initial proposal to raise it to €10 after industry pressure but it has not been enough to satisfy Ryanair.
"We’re moving aircraft to those countries who are competitive," O'Leary said. "Belgium is not competitive. France is not competitive. Germany is hopelessly uncompetitive."
Belgium’s new levy is still lower than in neighbouring countries. The Netherlands already charges €30.25 per departing passenger, and Germany charges €13.03 for most European flights.
The trimming of Ryanair's winter routes follows similar strategies by Sweden's SAS and Easyjet who have both reduced flights this year.
O’Leary warned passengers to expect higher fares. Ryanair has locked in this year’s fuel at about $67 a barrel by agreeing the price in advance, which protects it from rising oil costs. He expects that price to double next year as the protection runs out.
"We guarantee no fuel surcharges," O’Leary said, "but there is no doubt that airfares are going to rise significantly in 2027 because of much higher oil prices."
His warning comes as war in the Middle East pushes oil prices sharply higher. Brent crude, the international benchmark, closed at $109.86 a barrel on Friday, its highest level since May, and has since topped $110 as tanker attacks threaten supplies from the Persian Gulf.