Shane Cassells (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for bringing forward the National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2022. I commend her on using her Second Stage speech to set out in detail the ecosystem of the tourism industry and explain why this Bill and the increase in extending the limit of capital expenditure is so critical and why it will make a major difference. That capital investment broadens our appeal as a destination. People who are spending their money in this sphere want quality. We must ensure the nature of the offer that is put forward is of the highest quality.

From our work as members of the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media, we see the benefits across the board at a national level, not just economically but socially and culturally. In terms of that capital investment, being from County Meath, I see a substantial part of that expenditure by Fáilte Ireland in my county around the heritage offering to our international and, most importantly, our domestic tourists, who, maybe because of staycations in recent years, are appreciating the heritage offer on their doorstep. On that doorstep is a wealth of internationally rated heritage sites in which Fáilte Ireland has invested in the past year. I commend it and the Minister on that.

The Minister touched on some of those sites in her speech, in particular the investment at Brú na Bóinne. Everyone knows of Newgrange but, as a child growing up in County Meath, I always found Knowth a more interesting site to explore. Fáilte Ireland, working with its partners in the Office of Public Works and the Minister, has now invested €5.5 million in the Brú na Bóinne site. This year, it invested almost €1.4 million in the new tourist attraction at Knowth. That is greatly significant for the broader attraction of the whole Brú na Bóinne area, reimagining that Boyne Valley drive to connect the historic points that exist in County Meath and making sure more international and domestic visitors come. That Boyne Valley drive is being reimagined from a point-to-point journey between some of Ireland's most important and compelling heritage sites to a wider immersive visitor proposition that becomes a 5,000 year journey through time.

One of the big initiatives launched this year by Fáilte Ireland in conjunction with Meath County Council and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media was the Trim destination town, on which nearly €500,000 was spent. I was delighted to be there with members of Meath County Council, Fáilte Ireland, and Councillor Aisling Dempsey, our chairperson from that region, on the Porch Field project, which will provide outdoor performance spaces in County Meath. It will use that natural heritage in our town of Trim and the carefully chosen spectacular views of the River Boyne beside Newtown and Trim Castle as a backdrop to the performance area. That is very important.

In conjunction with that we have the Púca Festival, which is an international festival celebrating our heritage in terms of Hallowe'en and the ancient tradition of Samhain over 2,000 years. This three-day vibrant and contemporary festival in places like Trim, Athboy and Ráth Chairn is supported by Fáilte Ireland to make sure our centre of County Meath is highlighted on an international stage.

Finally, one of the big and really significant projects being invested in is the Boyne greenway and navigation restoration scheme.This would link the heritage towns of Navan and Drogheda and use the national heritage there. It would also bring places like Slane Castle and the international visitor centre that will be happening there into play. Fáilte Ireland and the Minister are working with partners on that multimillion euro investment. Work to date has included identification and topographical studies, surveys and constraint identifications of the area because of the sensitivities involved. That will be a game changer for the towns of Navan and Drogheda. When we talk about capital investment and allowing the thresholds to increase, these are the examples where real and significant change is happening because of investment by Fáilte Ireland and the Minister in a heritage county like Meath. It will make sure that, in a county where I started out as a public representative 24 years ago and was lucky to be a member of the board of Meath tourism, we were way down the rankings as a tourist destination in Ireland. As a result of investment like this, we have grown steadily by using what is on our doorstep, namely, our heritage. We have risen up the rankings as a result of that investment.

I commend the Minister and Fáilte Ireland. I look forward to the Bill progressing.