Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Senator Dolan and others have spoken of the importance of greenways and the connectivity and marketing opportunities they present. It is time to organise a debate in this House on the future of tourism. The last time Ireland was in a recession, back in 2009, 2010 and 2011, tourism was the first industry to help kick-start our economy. Pre-pandemic, some 10 million people visited this country from abroad every year. We need to constantly upgrade our tourism offering and invest in our gold-plated tourism attractions, such as the Cliffs of Moher and other places. We also need to have good quality, silver-plated tourist attractions that might not necessarily be as high profile but would be interesting and keep people in areas for longer. The better and more substantial the offering we have, the more tourists will come to our country. We have a golden opportunity because of our beautiful landscape. We are an island nation with phenomenal panoramic views. Tourism will play a huge role in the future of this country. A debate on tourism would be opportune at some stage in the not-too-distant future.