UK competition authority stands firm on Ryanair, Aer Lingus ruling

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it would not change an order for Ryanair to sell down its 30 percent stake in rival Aer Lingus because of IAG's proposed bid for Aer Lingus.

Ryanair had asked the CMA to reconsider its 2013 decision, saying IAG's securing of support from Aer Lingus's board for the 1.36 billion-euro (0.90 billion pounds) bid disproved the regulator's argument that its shareholding might be an obstacle to Aer Lingus being acquired by another airline.

In a provisional verdict published on Friday, the CMA said that as British Airways owner IAG has made its bid conditional on securing Ryanair's support, the Irish carrier remains a significant hurdle to any merger.

Ryanair has made a series of legal challenges to the CMA order to reduce its shareholding by at least 25 percent and is planning to appeal to the UK's Supreme Court.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; editing by Jason Neely)