Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

In the late 1980s and early 1990s it was given the go ahead to redevelop a number of their hotels. Subsequently it set up new hotels, including the Great Southern Hotel at the airport, which is now the flagship hotel. They were given permission to invest in the Derry and Cork hotels and to refurbish the Corrib, Eyre Square, Parknasilla and Killarney hotels. Despite these efforts the group has continued to have trading difficulties. Accumulated debt is €40 million and rising. The Corrib, Galway and Rosslare hotels represent a serious strain on the group and only the airport hotel is operating with reasonable success. Even in this hotel wage costs are uncompetitive and the classic hotels of Parknasilla, Killarney and Eyre Square need major capital investment and retrenchment. A number of difficulties have continued for several years and I have continued to speak with staff, management and unions over the past few years.

The board of the Great Southern Hotel Group has decided to sell the hotels as a going concern. The Dublin Airport Authority fully endorses the decision and the Government as shareholder has been kept fully informed of these issues. I have made the point to the chairman of the Dublin Airport Authority and to the Minister that it is important to engage with staff and staff interests to deal with these as a going concern and keep them as hotels in so far as is possible, keeping as many staff employed as possible, if not extending employment.

The reality is that the hotels are not going where they need to go. The Government assessment is that the orderly disposal of the hotels as a going concern offers the best opportunity for them to reach full potential in a niche market to which they are best suited. This will enable hotels to contribute to tourism in the community. The Great Southern Hotel Group has engaged advisers to assist in the orderly disposal. The Minister will meet staff interests in the next few days to discuss how we can assist in this process.

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