Kieran Phelan (Fianna Fail)

On another topic I wish to compliment some of our State agencies. Great credit must be given to the Office of Public Works for the manner in which it maintains many of the tourism attractions in the country. There are many aspects to tourism here in Ireland and much of it relates to internal tourism. I am pleased with the initiatives on which many of the regions throughout the country have embarked to attract Irish visitors for weekend breaks or for their summer holidays. We have all seen the advertisement in the newspapers, on television and radio, in magazines and even on billboards, inviting us to spend a hard earned break in various parts of the country. I am pleased to see this type of marketing and advertising, because as someone who was involved in the East Coast and Midlands Tourism, I know only to well the benefit of Irish visitors can bring to a region.

We can be proud of many of the initiatives the Government introduced around the country to give incentives to build holiday-homes, cottages and other tourist facilities. The previous Minister for Finance, Mr. McCreevy, was very forward thinking in some of the schemes he introduced. Senators will also be aware of the benefit of these tax incentives in ensuring the building of high quality accommodation across the country.

The announcement of the establishment of a new consumer agency to take action on prices is most welcome. This new watchdog must use its powers to the fullest possible extent to clamp down on soaring costs across the country. When fully operational, the agency will benefit both consumers here in Ireland and tourists. I am pleased this State agency will be handed statutory powers including the authority to close down businesses and impose on-the-spot fines on those who rip off consumers, including tourists.

Various studies have shown the areas of most concern to tourists coming to Ireland. It goes without saying that the main complaint is about the weather, about which we cannot do anything. However, we can be proactive and promote activities abroad that are not dependent on beautiful sunshine or calm clear days. I am encouraged that the Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism, Deputy O'Donoghue, has allocated an indicative grant fund of €12 million to be divided between the Border midlands and western, and southern and eastern regions. This will see an increased investment in outdoor pursuits such as equestrian, cycling, walking, specialist outdoor activities, water-based tourism and health tourism.

It would be foolish for me to try to defend some of the costs that our tourists are faced with in Ireland. The American Express report is, and should be a huge wake-up call for all those involved in the tourism sector. The Government listened carefully to the concerns of many within the sector and ensured no increases in VAT or in excise duty on alcohol. Unfortunately, this freeze on the part of the Government was not matched by many in the industry.

Cost factors are undoubtedly a significant influence on Ireland's competitive position as a tourism destination. This has been identified as a key issue that needs to be addressed if we are to increase overseas tourism numbers. Fáilte Ireland is rolling out programmes to help individual tourism enterprises to better manage costs and also to benchmark performance against competition, both national and international. Initiatives such as this are most welcome and this work should continue. The focus is not so much on price as on value and my message is not so much about high prices as value for money for tourists.

We have to be real in our criticism of the tourism industry in Ireland. However, for many years Ireland has not been a cheap holiday destination. It has never been, nor does it intend to be, on a par with the cheap mass-market destinations such as the south of Spain, Greece or Turkey. However, Ireland was competitive in the 1990s. It has always been my view that if Ireland's tourism industry is to restore the competitiveness it enjoyed in the boom years, a multifaceted approach by both the private and public sectors is required. It is also worth pointing out that the strength of the euro and related weakness of the US dollar and sterling present additional challenges for domestic tourism in Ireland in terms of the perception of value for money. Unfortunately these exchange rate changes are out of our control.

People who take advantage of a special occasion or function to increase their prices undermine the efforts of State agencies to sell the country. These greedy individuals give our country and our fine tourism industry a very bad name and, in the words of my colleague Senator Leyden, they should be named and shamed.