Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I welcome what the Minister said about the new strategy because it appears to address the concerns expressed in the House on numerous occasions about the rural aspect of tourism promotion. There is now a two-tier system: the short term stays in Dublin, Galway and other cities and the two to three week stays by families in rural areas, on which we are losing out. From what the Minister has said, it appears Fáilte Ireland will address some of those issues. Can the family stay aspect be examined because that is the major concern? There are short-term stays in the cities and three and four-day festivals but there is no creativity to encourage families to stay in rural Ireland for longer. That is the problem area and bed and breakfast operators tell us they have had bad years. There is a loss of revenue given the reduced number of families visiting rural areas. That is the major problem I can decipher from the information I have received. There are festivals, short-term stays, stag nights and so on in the larger cities but we are unable to attract families who instead go for sun holidays more cheaply than we can provide holidays in this country.

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