That's a fair concern, Im rather surprised he didnt address it at the start.
I know that if I ran Cork or Shannon Airports, id screw Aer Lingus knowing they couldn't do anything about it.
Two points:
If charges were raised BA could destroy the LHR service while still operating it by using really bad slot pairs to serve the route
IAG could scrap all T/A ops if SNN were to take advantage and that could potentially include US PHL service!
Airport charges deal could end the Aer Lingus saga - Independent.ie
So it would appear Cork & Shannon airports might be the key to the deal?
Trade Unions supporting the deal will be critical IMO.