Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister, Deputy Burke, chairs a hospitality and tourism forum that looks at a lot of the issues the Deputy has raised such as access outside working hours to hospitality, including cafés, and the importance of having a vibrant night-time economy. The Minister co-chairs the forum with the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin. That initiative shows the level of cross-departmental co-operation and collaboration that is required and is happening in this area. We are absolutely committed to continuing that work.

The task force will provide a fantastic opportunity to revisit a lot of these issues and to re-energise and refocus policies and budgets towards them. It will be very positive for Dublin city centre. As I said, the task force has 12 weeks to put together its report. Once we have the report, we will look at the recommendations. The Taoiseach led on this matter and proactively convened the task force. That shows his commitment to, and the Government's support for, rejuvenating Dublin city centre.

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