Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am well aware of that work, some of which I am involved in. There have been four plans since 2014. The first one was the new marketing plan, Discover Lough Derg: life by the lake. There was a €10 million proposal for this, which was not spent in its entirety. We had the Hidden Heartlands plan that my former colleagues developed, which came a couple of years later and fit into that. There was the Lough Derg visitor experience plan, to which the Minister referred. We also had the plan for the Shannon with Waterways Ireland. I support all these plans and the fantastic work that has been done. The issue, however, when it comes to tourism, is that 4% of tourists come to that area and avail of what it offers.

The real issue is stickiness, as it is called. In tourism, there are three "As" - accommodation, attractions and activities - and one "E" - events. We have the attractions, the activities and the events. We have only two hotels. The Minister can come to Nenagh and Ballina-Killaloe - I live between these two areas. She can come to Portumna. There is very little accommodation here. We need a situation that will allow more accommodation to be built. We need more glamping and facilities. I have seen the marketing that is going on. My former colleagues are fantastic at it. From a planning and product development perspective, we need to facilitate the provision of more accommodation to create stickiness so that people can stay in this fantastic area at the centre of Ireland.

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