Irish government to consider Ryanair's Aer Lingus offer

DUBLIN (Reuters) - The Irish government said on Wednesday it would consider Ryanair's (RYA.I) new offer to buy rival airline Aer Lingus (AERL.I), in which the state holds a 25 percent stake, but it will be careful to preserve competition.

"The government will have to be very, very careful how they dispose of this very valuable national asset," Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said.

The government wants to preserve competition among airlines serving Irish routes and it wants to protect links to the UK, Lenihan said in an apparent reference to Aer Lingus's valuable landing slots at London's Heathrow airport.

"At the same time, (Ryanair Chief Executive) Mr O'Leary has made an offer which we'll have to carefully consider," Lenihan told public broadcaster RTE.

Ryanair (RYA.L), Europe's biggest low-cost airline, said on Tuesday it was seeking to meet with Aer Lingus (AERL.L) shareholders after the Aer Lingus board rejected its new 750 million euro (646 million pound) bid.

(Reporting by Andras Gergely, editing by Will Waterman)