James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)

The time has come to have a fresh look at the way we promote tourism, in particular at the structures that are currently in place. The regional tourism boards have outlived their usefulness. Greater emphasis should be placed on the county tourism committees because members of such committees take great pride in their own area and are anxious to promote it to the best of their ability. The committees operate on a voluntary basis but should be given more teeth to promote the local tourism product.

We must also examine the marketing of tourism throughout the country. In particular, funding for marketing is insufficient. We are not getting our message across in Europe and fewer visitors are coming here as a result. I know we have the honey pots but they have been in place for many years.

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