Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I put it to the Minister of State that following the economic crash of 2008-2009 agriculture and tourism were the two sectors that led the recovery of the Irish economy. Unfortunately, with Covid-19, tourism is now taking a sustained hit from which it may never fully recover. We have heard Deputies talk of their own counties, and in my constituency of Kilkenny city our economy is largely based on tourism and festivals. Just last weekend we would have had our roots festival. They need to be supported to survive and that is very important.

We hear that the staycation should now become the mainstay of Irish holidaymakers. It is the patriotic thing to do. It is the safe thing to do and is hugely enjoyable. Many of us have yet really and truly to discover Ireland. It is also the climate-friendly thing to do right now. Outdoor activities and safe spaces will be more attractive as tourist options for local communities as we emerge from the pandemic. Will the Department continue to fund the outdoor recreation infrastructure scheme, ORIS? Will the Department continue to look at the greenways and blueways, which the Minister of State has just spoken of, many of which are shovel ready? Local authorities will find it very difficult to find the match funding and the Green Party believes that we should be looking at 90% funding for those projects. They will add greatly to the local economy and add greatly to construction jobs. A call for ORIS projects is expected this month and local authorities will struggle to meet the match funding for those projects.

Local authorities will continue to try to support festivals. Hopefully the Kilkenny Arts Festival will still take place in some form but it and the Galway Arts Festival, among others, will struggle this year. Many are trying to adapt to using social distancing, or simply cannot adapt and will not go ahead this year. If we support them to trade through this year and to survive into next year they will continue to support local economies. I refer the House to an excellent document, commissioned by Fáilte Ireland and penned by Justin Green, Let's Celebrate - the Cultural and Economic Contribution of Live Entertainment Events in Ireland, which illustrates the economic value of this tourism to Ireland. Every €1 spent in the local economy has a multiplier of another €4 in return.

Deputy Leddin spoke of destination towns. It is important that Fáilte Ireland takes a much more proactive role in our planning system, and especially in becoming more vocal in commenting on the destruction of natural and built heritage. We need to look at more collaboration at strategic level and at the link between policy proposals for built and natural heritage. Fáilte Ireland should play a key role in that. We should also be looking at environmental and sustainability indicators around the impact of tourism and the promotion of the EU Ecolabel flower logo for ecologically conscious visitors.

I ask the Minister of State to look at the disproportionate spend by people who travel abroad with €5 billion spent on foreign holidays and a €2 billion spend on domestic holidays. It is time to flip that figure now. We need to do this. It is the right thing to do to help and support all our local businesses and our local tourism industry that are so dependent on visitors going forward.

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