Mr. Eoghan O'Mara Walsh:

I am happy to keep it short because I will share time with Ms Ní Mhurchú. I thank the committee for the opportunity to make this short opening statement. As committee members will know, the tourism and hospitality sector is the largest indigenous industry in the country and the biggest regional employer. ITIC is the umbrella representative group for the sector. The self-catering sector is particularly important for Irish tourism and for decades has been part of the visitor experience. Tourism has rebounded strongly, which is the good news from Covid. However, there is concern and apprehension about the year ahead on a number of factors, including energy costs, softening demand, and global economic challenges. Tourism is the largest indigenous industry the country has and the biggest regional employer, with 20,000 businesses in the sector. Most of them are small or medium enterprises.

The difficulties for the year ahead are complicated by Government’s over-reliance on tourism accommodation bed stock to house Ukrainian refugees and asylum seekers. The latest data made available by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth show that 32% of all tourism beds in regional Ireland are contracted by the Government and thus no longer available to the tourism economy. In this context, the proposed sharp reduction short-term tourist lets is a concern for ITIC. The Government is understandably trying to increase the supply of long-term rentals but potentially onerous planning regulations risk denuding rural and coastal Ireland of self-catering properties just when additional tourism supply is most needed. ITIC fully supports the need for a register of short-term tourist rentals and is pleased that it is to be managed by Fáilte Ireland. It should give a clear and transparent overview of the sector and its regional spread and capacity. It is the potentially onerous planning regulations that concern ITIC. If planning is required across the country to operate a short-term tourist let, it is likely to reduce capacity greatly. Fáilte Ireland has estimated that there are around 30,000 short-term tourist lets in the State, and it believes that up to 12,000 properties will leave the short-term tourist let market.

ITIC accepts that urban centres in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and possibly Galway need more long term rental properties and thus reduced capacity of short-term tourist lets in these areas is understandable even though it will hurt the tourism industry. However, outside of these urban hotspots, there is a need for a proportionate, fair and balanced approach to short-term tourist lets. In our view, planning should not be required for a property outside a rent pressure zone, RPZ. Even within an RPZ, there needs to be a distinction between an urban RPZ and a regional RPZ. Currently, there are six local authority areas and 48 local electoral areas that are RPZs. This is expected to increase further. The idea of a short-term tourist let in Cobh, Killarney, Gorey or Kinsale requiring planning with potential refusal and-or onerous obligations has serious consequences. These, and many other rural and coastal tourism hubs, will need short-term tourist lets. It is vital for the local tourism economy. It is arguable whether these short-term tourist lets will ever go back to the long-term rental market.

It is a great frustration for industry that we have yet to see the proposed planning guidelines from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. I understand the committee has asked to see them. These guidelines, their reach and penetration are critical to the subject.

ITIC is of the view that urban hotspots should require planning to operate a short-term tourist let but the rest of the country should have a much more tourism-centric approach. Urban and non-urban areas must be treated differently. It is welcome that a six-month grace period is planned but ITIC is firmly of the view that the legislation and planning guidelines need to be workable or otherwise there will be material harm to the Irish tourism economy. I thank members for their time.