Feargal Quinn (Independent) | Oireachtas source

One of the most important areas of business opportunities is tourism. Senator Mooney regularly reminds us of that, but every time we look for changes to encourage tourism, there always seems to be someone saying that those changes do not suit.The recent effort in Dún Laoghaire to erect a cruise ship berth is being criticised by the local yacht clubs because it will interfere with them. Let us ensure we have one approach that sees an opportunity and a challenge and does something about it. Tourism has been successful in recent years. It has been particularly helped by the Government's decision to reduce the VAT rate applicable to that business. That is not enough. Can we get everyone in the country saying let us get behind anything that is going to bring about change?

Another area of concern is the small businesses that have websites but are not equipped to trade on those sites. This is a big opportunity. A huge amount of business can be done through online trade. I recall going into a small shop in Estonia where two or three people worked but I was taken upstairs where there were half a dozen working on the Internet, trading around Europe. This is another opportunity we can do something about. It would be well worthwhile debating it in this House to get a wider view, not just that of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation.