I very much doubt that IAG would be interested in saying something just to raise the price Virgin would have to pay or create a bidding war - it usually means a binding statement to be credible enough to raise a share price and is a dangerous game to play that rarely ends well.
On the other hand I could quite easily see IAG saying something publicly if they could get a good look at the confidential side of Flybe's books and gain good knowledge of non public info, without having to make a full bid