Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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542. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the position regarding the reopening of the Fáilte Ireland tourist office in Waterford; if her attention has been drawn to the fact the decision for the branch to remain closed is having a negative effect on local businesses, small tourism operators such as walking tour and heritage site guides; if she will investigate the possibility of reversing this decision and reopening the office in Waterford as soon as possible; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40570/21]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The management of Tourist Information Offices is an operational matter for Fáilte Ireland. It is my understanding that Fáilte Ireland provided an update to the Deputy on 15 July 2021 regarding the status of Waterford Tourist Information Office.

Most of Fáilte Ireland’s Tourist Information Centres, including the Waterford Office, have been closed since March 2020 largely due to COVID-19 restrictions. In 2021 Fáilte Ireland is maintaining the operational decision taken during Summer 2020 concerning Tourism Information Centres. Ten of the Centres reopened on 2 June 2021 and Waterford was not included in this group. I understand that this decision was based on several factors, including the low projected footfall, staff redeployment to critical roles supporting tourism businesses within Fáilte Ireland and the capacity of the tourism information centre to re-open under current COVID public health restrictions.