Mr. Niall Gibbons:

I thank the Deputy for all the support he gave us in his time as Minister of State. What are our customers saying about us? We have conducted thousands of surveys in recent months and some of the key messages are that when people get travelling again - as they are very keen to do - they will travel to destinations that are closer to home. They are keen to get back to visiting their friends and family and they will likely go to familiar destinations. That is different from the message we would have been given a year ago when people were looking for destinations they could brag about and the new and the wonderful. What does that mean for us? It means we are well-positioned and that we are likely to be out much earlier in markets such as Great Britain, mainland Europe and North America than we will be in long-haul markets, which we do not expect to really come back until 2022 and beyond.

There are other trends. For example, 20% of European travellers do not see themselves taking a break until 2022. There are still a lot of people who are undecided on their destination for next year. Ireland benchmarks well against a competitive set. Unfortunately, higher Covid-19 rates put people off. The types of issues people are looking at online are the costs of travelling and also cancellation policies, which are significant. They are also wondering if their travel insurance will cover them if they get Covid-19. There is still a big cloud of uncertainty out there. The big message coming through is that people are still planning and dreaming of a trip and very keen to travel. As I said, there will be a bigger focus next year on markets that are closer to home. We are looking to be ready to get out of the blocks as soon as the time is right.