Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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6. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the total funding allocated to tourism agencies for the years 2019 to 2023; and of this, the total spend on tourism in counties Laois and Offaly, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24027/24]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The total funding allocated to the tourism agencies, Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland, is as follows:

2019 - €173.9 million

2020 – €182.6 million

2021 – €219.1 million

2022 - €287.4 million

2023 - €228.2 million

It is important to note that neither my Department nor Fáilte Ireland allocate funding on a county-by-county basis. Development monies are instead informed by destination development priorities identified in Failte Ireland’s Destination and Experience Development Plans and guided by Regional Tourism Development Strategies. The needs in a particular county will depend on the level of destination maturity of the area, i.e. the number of tourism businesses, maturity of product base, access into the county and other visitor-facing infrastructure on the ground.

Notwithstanding this, Fáilte Ireland has invested in a range of projects and initiatives in Laois and Offaly, and in the wider region, in recent years, including:

• €66,500 via its Digital that Delivers programme;
• €900,000 through Destination Towns;
• €527,000 though Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands Website Improvement Programme across the entire region including Offaly;
• €945,000 in the National Mountain Bike Trail Project in conjunction with Coillte;
• €2.3 million in the Shannon Tourism Masterplan across the region;
• €32,000 in Strategic and Regional Festival Funding, and
• €400,000 on the Beara Breifne Way, which passes though Offaly.

Offaly is included in Fáilte Ireland’s new Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands Regional Tourism Development Strategy 2023 – 2027, while Laois is including in Fáilte Ireland’s new Ireland’s Ancient East Regional Tourism Development Strategy 2023 – 2027.

These strategies provide a roadmap for the tourism industry and all stakeholders involved in tourism in the respective regions and will help navigate the current challenges and steer a course towards a sustainable recovery and continued success. The plans set out a strategic approach to unlocking the commercial potential of both regions. They will ensure focus on tourism development is sustainable and regenerative and that the benefits accrue to local communities and to nature.

I will continue to advocate for and provide support to the tourism sector including in these two counties.