Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Leo Varadkar, to the House. It is nice to see him in the right hot seat. This is a positive and forward-looking motion on which I congratulate Senator Paul Coghlan. Tourism spans the length and breadth of the country. It has the potential to benefit every parish and city and, uniquely for an industry, it distributes wealth. It has the potential to reach into parts of the country which manufacturing companies might not even consider. I am regularly reminded by people in Clifden that tourism is Clifden's Intel. Its importance gives rise to implications for access and infrastructure. We must not forget that people live in places other than in the capital.

A number of issues impact upon and determine our tourism performance. The central objective of any tourism initiative must be to get bums on seats and to bring in more tourists which will create jobs in the process. Every initiative, from the abolition of the air travel tax to the implementation of the visa waiver scheme aimed at specific emerging markets to the all-island approach adopted by Tourism Ireland, is very positive, as is the co-operation with the airlines and other stakeholders. Tourism is one of the most efficient sectors in creating employment. If visitors come, they must be served.

I refer to statistics relating to an hotel in Galway. Tourism is a labour-intensive sector. A Galway hotelier informed me that every 50 visitors using his restaurant means he can hire one person. If this figure is extrapolated it shows that for every one million tourists coming to Ireland, there is a potential for 20,000 jobs to be created. I hope Ryanair takes up the challenge offered by the Minister when he lifted the air travel tax. This has been one of the most progressive initiatives with a view to creating more jobs. The Government is also to be congratulated on its decision to reduce PRSI and VAT rates on tourism related activities.

The cost of employment must be considered. I ask the Minister to address the joint labour committees, JLCs, in the context of Sunday working time. The rate in Galway is €10.12 whereas there is an exemption from the JLC in Dublin where the rate is €8.65. I ask the Minister to explain the difference because this is not a level playing pitch. I ask him to address the capital versus rural divide in this regard.

Senator Clune has touched on the importance of competitiveness and the unique selling point of our product. It is essential to create niche markets and I ask the Minister to encourage proposals in this area. I refer to marine tourism events such as the Volvo ocean race, educational tourism events such as summer schools, and cultural tourism events such as the Writing Ireland initiative in which both the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport and I were involved.

We must ensure the national infrastructure is adequate in order that visitors can travel to the regions. I refer in particular to airports. I have a question for the Minister which was put to me by tourism outlets in the west. Why is Aer Lingus continuing to bypass Shannon Airport when flying from the United States? I refer to businesses such as Cashel House Hotel which provides almost all the employment in its area but which is disadvantaged by the fact that Aer Lingus flights from the US do not touch down in Shannon. I ask the Minister in his reply to deal with the issue of regional development and regional jobs.