Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the fact that the CRSS and other Government supports have been a saviour for many businesses the length and breadth of the country. I am here to speak on behalf of the outdoor activity and adventure tourism businesses that have been left out of the CRSS. They have not only they been left out of the scheme but because they do not have a fixed premises they have also been left out of the restart grant scheme. We need to review that because these businesses were the wonder of summer 2020. People from across Ireland flocked to the coast and other parts of Ireland and they enjoyed kayaking, boat trips and whale watching. These were the scenes that filled our social media feeds and TV screens. They were beamed internationally and enjoyed by audiences across the globe. These businesses are the future of Irish tourism and we need to ensure that they are there in the future.

Sea kayaking and night kayaking in west Cork is one of the most phenomenal activities someone can take up. Boat trips in Kinsale Harbour or out to Bull Rock on the Beara Peninsula were the scenes of our summer in 2020 and one of the few positives that people had to enjoy. We should have no doubt that Ireland can place itself as the future of adventure tourism across the globe. We have the activities, scenery and coastline but we need businesses to be there post pandemic and the only way we can ensure that happens is by supporting them now because they are closed and they cannot open, facilitate people or bring them out onto the water. I urge the Minister to review the legislation and bring these businesses within the scope of the CRSS.

I want to take this opportunity to speak up on behalf of businesses such as those involved in entertainment that do not have a fixed premises and professionals and business owners who may not necessarily operate from a premises but still have insurance costs, public liability costs and tax liabilities to pay. We need to step in there as well and support these businesses.

I am sure that at this stage every Deputy has been contacted by employers that say their staff think they have undercut them somehow by putting them on the EWSS. This is down to the lack of clarity and information being provided. Some employees have been issued their tax liability for 2020 and they are not happy with how this has been handled. It is something I wrote to the Minister about back in October to bring it to his attention that there was confusion and a bit of conflict between employers and employees around this. I acknowledge that employees can pay this back through tax credits over a period of four years but it has come as a surprise to many to see that they owe money to Revenue. Can the Minister clear this up and communicate with employers and employees on what is happening in this regard?

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