Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the Chamber. I wish her well in her new role as Minister with responsibility for media, arts, tourism, culture, sport and the Gaeltacht. However, it is a cause of great concern and disappointment not only to me, but to those in the tourism industry, which in normal times contributes in excess of €9 billion to the economy and employs more than 250,000 people, that tourism sits amid six other important portfolios.

Two weeks ago in the House, I suggested pre-flight Covid testing. The Dublin Airport Authority, DAA, which is a State-run agency and whose representatives are currently in Leinster House appearing before the Covid-19 committee, is suggesting the exact same solution. I am delighted to see that someone is listening. Is the Minister listening and will she lead on this matter?

I do not have to tell the Minister that the tourism industry is on its knees. Covid-19 has essentially switched it off overnight. Although it had been facing challenges, the industry was set for another bumper year of growth. We were told that projections showed record figures and growth upon growth, with 11 million foreign visitors and something similar domestically. Even in the face of Brexit, the situation looked challenging, but we were ready. Brexit budgeting of €47 million had been announced on top of the €186 million Fáilte Ireland budget. That is what we spent last year. How are we to spend that money this year?

We have increased access from China. The US was set to herald wave upon wave of new market opportunities. The overwhelming success of the Wild Atlantic Way was to be emulated by the soon-to-be-successful Ireland's Ancient East, Ireland's Hidden Heartlands, the Spirit of Dublin and offerings from our friends in Tourism Northern Ireland. As as we know, marketing works 50% of the time. We just do not know which 50%. What happens now? What are the Minister's plans? Were is the political leadership? What is she going to do about this?

The Fáilte Ireland Authority's board consists of a chair and 12 appointed members. A list of highly eminent names and all experts within their given fields and sectors, they have to be commended on their contribution to the industry as a whole, but with a budget touching on €250 million of public funding, where is the political accountability? Where is the Minister in all of this? What is her role?

The emphasis has been well and truly placed on the international visitor while placing the domestic visitor as an additional bonus. We have placed most of our eggs into the international basket. We find ourselves in an environment where we have not been cultivating a stay-at-home mentality in what appears to have been a concession based solely on meeting the needs of the international. As we look to the future of international travel in the short to medium term, we see the new trends emerging, the continued uncertainty that the pandemic has brought and the possibility that, with the ease of international movement, viral spread may become more and more a part of our new reality. What is the Minister's plan for that? We must shift an element of our focus to that likelihood.

Our domestic tourism industry has suffered greatly, but not only from the direct effects of Covid-19 and the necessary measures taken to lessen its impact or from the effects of mixed messaging by this indecisive Government. The industry will continue to suffer unnecessarily from the effects of what could be interpreted as an international priority focus. What is the Minister's view on this? There are people listening who need to know. There are 180,000 jobs at stake. We need to know what we plan is.

A new emphasis needs to be placed on a true partnership model, where the strategies employed by our tourism industry are held more closely to scrutiny and where the measure of success is not based solely on figures at the airport, which is something that we will have to change, but also on the lived experience of the domestic visitor and citizen and how tourism can be supported to become part of our cities, towns and village communities, something that has to date been paid lip service but can pay dividends.The current and welcomed Fáilte Ireland strategy of encouraging visitors away from the more prestigious sites in an attempt to spread the visitor load has yet to materialise and the development of the much-vaunted new and exciting visitor experience development plans remains unfinished. There are many examples of success within our tourism industry at a national and local level, including Boyne Valley Tourism, Westport, Donegal and Kerry, and those responsible should be recognised and congratulated. The flow of Covid-19 information to the sector has been solid and consistent. However, there are many examples of soft and easy goals being missed. Strategies have been pursued that have now been exposed and found to have fallen short. Does the Minister agree with that?

The financial supports are not sustainable. Our tourism industry is not looking for a handout, but for a hand-up at a time when it urgently needs it. While short-term investments are needed, we need to reassess how we do tourism and who does it. At this time of change and flux in a new world, now is the time to create a single decision-making forum with a focus on drawing together national and regional tourism interests, the OPW, the National Monuments Service and the local authorities. Such a forum should work to create a roadmap for our beleaguered tourism industry and to act as a conduit for the real discussion which must take place about the future of who we are and how we present our story to the world and to ourselves. Does the Minister agree that in light of the changing circumstances I have outlined, we need to grab hold of this now if we are to have a tourism industry that will survive? It demands it.