Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will not harangue the Tánaiste. He has been asked a lot of questions on the hospitality and drinks sector, and I appreciate that he has an understanding of it. What I will say is that for the Government to show it understands the hammer blow that has been delivered, it should support the sector's employees and enterprises, some of which have now been closed for over 16 weeks. I ask the Tánaiste to confirm that as part of the July stimulus legislation, which will be brought before the House before the recess, the Government will reduce the VAT rate on the hospitality sector, to include on-trade alcohol sales. There are 266,000 people employed in the sector, or 11% of our overall employees. Some 9,300 of these people are in Wexford, which used to have 43 pubs but now has 17. I ask the Tánaiste to confirm that.

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