Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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33. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the engagements she has had to date with the car rental industry in relation to the extraordinarily high prices being charged for rentals and the negative impact it is having on Irish tourism; if she will disclose the details of those discussions. [32202/22]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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I am aware of recent anecdotal reports about very high quotes for car rental which could impact negatively on the wider tourism ecosystem in Ireland.  While my Department and Fáilte Ireland are aware of these difficulties and have concerns about potential impact on the recovery of the tourism sector, neither the Department nor Fáilte Ireland have control over prices set by service providers within the tourism industry; specifically, my Department has no regulatory or other function in relation to the car rental industry. Each operator decides on their level of charges having regard to their costs and the requirement to make an adequate return on their investment. 

The Car Rental Council of Ireland is the representative trade organisation for the car rental industry in Ireland and is best placed to address specific queries.

I understand that the difficulties being experienced by the Irish car rental sector are being encountered in other markets too and reflect a lack of car supply post-Covid. We are seeing a strong recovery in inbound international tourism in 2022, and tourism more generally, with an anticipated 2022 recovery level of 60-70% of the 2019 numbers and this mismatch between visitor numbers and rental car supply is driving prices up.

There are no short-term solutions to this issue. Given the potential impact on the recovery of the tourism sector, my officials have met the Car Rental Council of Ireland who would recommend that people always contact car hire companies directly to secure the best possible price. My Department is also examining possible taxation options which might assist car rental companies to re-fleet in order to meet tourism demands.  However, taxation measures are ultimately a matter for the Minister for Finance and would have to be considered as part of budgetary considerations.