John O'Mahony (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Fenn and all the witnesses for the three enlightening presentations. As members and as individual citizens, we all have been watching The Gathering and the issues pertaining to tourism and what the joint committee has heard this morning can be summed up in the word "growth", which is important to the tourism sector and to the economy. Members also have just heard from the Irish Hotels Federation regarding the difficulties that still persist for hotels, which are key members of this drive for growth. Before turning to the members, I note the figures suggest that 4,175 events have been organised for The Gathering but on a lighter note, I welcome that our friends in the Gaelic Athletic Association, GAA, in London have enabled the addition of one more such event, scheduled for 21 July. I hope the runways at Ireland West Airport Knock will be crowded out for that event.

On a more serious note, however, I wish to pick up on a number of points. A couple of the presentations mentioned overall growth in more difficult times and less growth in the British market. In his presentation, I believe Mr. Nash mentioned that mainland Europe is an increasingly important market for the tourism industry and has now overtaken Britain, whereas for Fáilte Ireland, the Irish and British markets are still the largest markets. I seek clarification in this regard. My other question pertains to the observation that the recovery is uneven throughout the country, as the increases are taking place in Dublin and a number of cities. From a Dublin perspective, I note it is harder to get a hotel room now than was the case a couple of years ago. While that is anecdotal evidence, I also am aware of evidence suggesting the increases are not spreading as much to the rural areas in particular. Perhaps all three delegations might articulate something in this regard.