Martin Mansergh (Tipperary South, Fianna Fail)

Obviously, maintaining marketing investment abroad is important but I suppose it is a balance between maintaining fiscal sustainability while putting in place the necessary supports for sustainable economic renewal. The tourism renewal group has prioritised spending on marketing within the tourism budget and has advanced a range of economic and business arguments for its recommendations. The renewal group report will certainly help make the case for investing in tourism marketing and the Minister will make that case strongly with his Government colleagues in the coming weeks.

On the air travel tax, it is no surprise that a group charged with examining the renewal of Irish tourism would express concerns about the air travel tax. As I have stated, the Government must consider its response to any measure with additional tax or spending implications within the wider context of fiscal sustainability and economic renewal. The recommendations of the renewal group will be taken into account in framing the budget, along with the views of the Commission on Taxation, for example, but obviously I cannot pre-empt the outcome of those considerations, neither as Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism nor as Minister of State at the Department of Finance.

See this speech in context