Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have always been a huge supporter of the tourism sector and industry. I got to work very closely with it for three years as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport. I have continued to engage with it and I really find people who work in the tourism sector to be among the most hospitable and welcoming people, and among the best businesspeople we have in the country. I will never forget that in the 2011-12 period after the financial crash, three sectors lifted us out of that recession, namely, the multinationals, the agricultural and food sector and also tourism. We owe them a debt of gratitude for that. Tourism has the benefit of being able to create jobs all over the country, in the cities and also in rural areas.

We are experiencing a climate crisis, though. I think that is obvious to everyone in the country and the House and we have to take account of the impact that international and internal travel has on the climate. It has always been the case that we have taken into account not just the raw numbers of people visiting the country but also the spend. It would not be a secret to anyone in this House or in the tourism industry that, for example, somebody coming from the US who spends a week in Ireland and travels around the country will be of more economic value than somebody who comes and makes a short weekend visit. We have always taken into account both the numbers visiting and also the revenue brought in but people are welcome no matter where they are coming from or how long they stay.

On sustainability, we believe busing will become sustainable most quickly. Electric and hydrogen buses already exist. They are already being used and manufactured on the island. I anticipate that in the next ten years, we will see bus transfer becoming very environmentally sustainable. When it comes to aviation, the focus has to be on sustainable aviation fuels. It is early days yet. We want Ireland to be a leader on that. Ireland will always need aviation. It is an island, after all. The focus that we want is a move to sustainable and synthetic aviation fuels so that we can make that sustainable into the future.

With regard to tourism policy, the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin, is going to publish a new national tourism policy. That will be done in early 2024. It will focus on the environment and also economic sustainability for the sector.

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