The phrase ‘O’Leary high-fare rapists’ had barely left the Ryanair chief executive’s mouth before he was insisting it was perfectly acceptable, and that no apology would be forthcoming. Then, nine days later, he issued one anyway.
Michael O’Leary made the original remarks on 10 September 2026, speaking to journalists ahead of Ryanair’s annual general meeting at the company’s Swords headquarters in Co. Dublin. His precise words, reported by Yahoo Finance via the Press Association, were that some people would choose not to fly with Ryanair, but would ‘be overrun with the people abandoning Aer Lingus, Lufthansa, BA, and others desperate to get to Ryanair’s low fares because they can’t afford to fly with the high-fare rapists around Europe.’
When a Press Association reporter asked whether the language was appropriate, O’Leary said ‘Absolutely.’ He added: ‘British Airways, Lufthansa, and everybody else’s high fares, I’ll happily offend them on a regular basis.’
His doubling-down did not stop there. According to the Irish Independent, O’Leary also accused the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre’s chief executive Rachel Morrogh of making ‘defamatory comments’ in her letter to him requesting an apology.
What O’Leary Said, and What the DRCC Said Back
Morrogh wrote to O’Leary after the DRCC received calls from rape victims who were, in her words, ‘upset and distressed because of what you said.’ She offered him training on the impact of sexual violence. She also told the Irish Times: ‘It feels like Mr O’Leary is chasing soundbites with no regard for how they may affect people. For many survivors of rape, his words will be deeply hurtful and angering to hear.’
O’Leary’s written response was almost contemptuous. He stated, as RTÉ News reported, that he ‘certainly did not trivialise the crime of rape’ and denied having ‘dodged a question about whether it was offensive to victims of rape,’ accusing Morrogh of wrongly claiming this. He would not be issuing an apology, he said, nor accepting the offer of training.
Ireland’s deputy premier Simon Harris called it ‘clearly an inappropriate use of language’ and said O’Leary ‘should have moved to rectify it.’ UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander told LBC that victims of rape are ‘not going to be rushing to book tickets with him, let’s be honest.’
The O’Leary High-Fare Rapists Reversal, Nine Days Later
On 19 September 2026, O’Leary reversed course entirely. He issued what he called a ‘sincere and unreserved’ apology, describing his choice of language as ‘careless’ and saying ‘it won’t happen again.’ The BBC reported that he added: ‘I am truly sorry.’
In an apology video, O’Leary said, as reported by Deutsche Welle: ‘I have come to realize, however, that the word I used too carelessly has caused considerable upset and offense to a wide number of people, especially victims and survivors.’
O’Leary has been Ryanair’s CEO since 1994. In that time he has refined provocation into a business strategy. In 2004, he reportedly called the owners of Stansted Airport ‘a bunch of overcharging rapists’ in a row over airport charges. He has called some staff ‘lazy bastards’ and told passengers seeking refunds ‘we don’t want to hear your sob stories.’ The difference with this episode is that the blowback came fast, came from governments on two sides of the Irish Sea, and came from an organisation that could document it in the voices of distressed survivors.
The AGM that precipitated all of this passed without incident on the business side. According to Investing.com, shareholders approved all resolutions by substantial majorities; the remuneration policy received the lowest support at 61%, while the remuneration report garnered 86% approval, and both the financial statements and the final dividend declaration received 100% approval. The shares in issue at the time of the meeting stood at 1,037,578,393 ordinary shares of €0.006 each, per the Ryanair investor relations page.
The remuneration vote is worth watching. At 61% in favour, it clears the required majority but sits well below the thresholds most institutional governance codes regard as comfortable. Ryanair has said it will continue consulting shareholders. Given that the pay vote was overshadowed entirely by what the chairman was saying to reporters in the car park, the board may find that conversation easier than it might have been.
O’Leary’s formula has always been: say the outrageous thing, hold the line, collect the coverage, and let low fares do the rest. The formula broke this time. The question for whoever manages Ryanair’s next AGM is whether it stays broken.
