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

I am obviously utterly disappointed at the response and at the refusal to even examine this proposal further. There is mention of a cost of €570 million to the Exchequer. That is obviously not be ignored. We cannot pretend it is a small figure. It is a lot; it is €570 million. However, the cost to our communities, to society and to our tourism regions of losing cafes, restaurants and gastropubs on the main streets of our towns and villages is far greater. We know the economy is doing well and that we are at almost zero unemployment but there are other aspects to the economy in different regions that we cannot ignore. While there is a cost of €570 million, I will say again that 67% of jobs in rural Ireland are supported by the hospitality sector. It is the single biggest indigenous employer. I do not see that anywhere in the report or the assessment. I want to see a proper assessment of what this would mean to hospitality businesses, cafes, restaurants, gastropubs and hotels. That is what I want to see rather than a simple figure.

Back in March 2023, I flagged with the Taoiseach that there was a tidal wave coming down the line for the hospitality sector. We cannot help with some of the costs. Auto-enrolment and the increase in the minimum wage had to happen and we are not going to row back on them. There is no way we are going to row back on increased sick leave. The one thing we can fix is the VAT rate. I want to see it examined again. I am not going to give up in my quest to have this sorted. The administrative issues Revenue talks about are a load of baloney. This can happen. It happens in other countries. A rate of 13.5% on hospitality is far greater than the European average. This has to be revisited. I am not accepting the "No" I am getting as an answer today.

See this speech in context