Vol. 502 No. 2
5 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation if his attention has been drawn to the situation whereby all houses offering bed and breakfast accommodation to tourists in Northern Ireland have to be licensed; and the way in which he will deal with this anomaly in view of the fact the Ireland is now being marketed on an all-island basis. [7020/99]
21 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation the plans, if any, he has to introduce a licensing system for guest accommodation in view of the call by the Irish Hotels Federation to introduce this system to eliminate unfair competition; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7372/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 5 and 21 together.
There is already in place an extensive system of registration and listing of guest accommodation in accordance with standards set by Bord Fáilte. One of Bord Fáilte's functions is the registration of certain types of tourist accommodation such as hotels, guesthouses, holiday cottages, holiday apartments and holiday hostels. Arising from the implementation of the recommendations of the review of Bord Fáilte carried out by consultants A. D. Little Limited, in 1994, the inspection activities associated with these functions were contracted to a third party, Tourism Quality Services Limited. In addition, Bord Fáilte's system of approval for listing accommo dation in the bed and breakfast sector was also out-sourced to industry associations formally recognised by Bord Fáilte as self-regulatory bodies, on the basis that they apply Bord Fáilte agreed standards.
The issue of compulsory licensing of all tourist accommodation has been examined by successive Administrations and they have all reached the same conclusion that any compulsory system, in order to be effective, would require a significant diversion of resources currently devoted to the development of tourism towards administration and policing. This would be particularly burdensome because many accommodation providers only operate for short periods of the year.
In recent years there has been a substantial increase in the volume and range of tourist accommodation which has enhanced the choice available to tourists and allows market forces to weed out accommodation which is not of a sufficiently high standard to meet tourist requirements. In light of developments in the supply of accommodation, I share the view of my predecessors that the introduction of a compulsory licensing system would be an inappropriate use of resources. There is no evidence to support the view that such a system would have any appreciable impact on accommodation standards over and above that brought about by market forces.
In this context, it should be noted that all providers of accommodation for tourists are obliged, whether approved or unapproved, to comply with official requirements in areas such as taxation, planning, fire and safety and hygiene. In the past year, I have written to my ministerial colleagues with responsibility in these areas asking them to ensure that there are no advantages for unapproved operators in the application of the law.
Meanwhile, Bord Fáilte and the recognised approving bodies will continue to encourage all operators to seek approved status by highlighting, in particular, the benefits to be gained, including access to official marketing through Bord Fáilte and the tourist office network and access to special support schemes, such as tax incentives, which are available only to the approved sector. As part of this process, I recently announced a major new initiative by Bord Fáilte to help small accommodation providers. It is proposed to undertake a fundamental review of how the various groups in this category are branded and marketed overseas. Part of this process will involve the appointment of a project executive and a steering committee, who will undertake market research and then develop and implement a marketing plan. I am confident that this initiative will result in a long-term marketing plan for smaller tourism accommodation providers being put in place. Resources totalling £300,000 have been set aside to support this initiative in 1999.
The Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to comment on the licensing arrangements for bed and breakfast accommodation in Northern Ireland. The marketing of Ireland on an all-island basis as a tourist desti nation is part of the ongoing cross-Border co-operation and partnership which exists at departmental, agency and industry level in the tourism area.
Co-operation at agency level between Bord Failte and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board has existed since the 1960s and has been considerably strengthened and facilitated in recent years by the availability of financial assistance for marketing, training and product development from the European Union and the International Fund for Ireland.
The Overseas Tourism Marketing Initiative, which operates on an all-island basis, brings together Bord Fáilte, the NITB and industry representatives North and South in a £7 million EU co-funded annual consumer tourism marketing programme in the US, Britain, France and Germany. My Department and the Northern Ireland Department of Economic Development are also engaged in the joint administration of tourism elements of the INTERREG, Peace and Reconciliation and International Fund for Ireland programmes and marketing of the Shannon-Erne waterway.
Inevitably there are many differences between State supports and other arrangements in place for the tourism industry North and South. However, these differences do not hamper co-operation in relation to tourism marketing of Ireland on an all-island basis.
Why was tourism, an area of great potential, not included in the British-Irish Agreement Bill discussed in the House yesterday? Given that he spoke previously about competitiveness and standards, how can the Minister stand over the level of accommodation offered by providers whose premises are unregistered and uninspected?
With regard to tourism being excluded from the British-Irish Agreement Bill, the Deputy will understand that this was a matter for agreement between the British and Irish Governments and the parties involved in drawing up the Good Friday Agreement and the agreement reached in December. Those questions are more appropriate to another source.
What other source?
The matters to which I refer were the subject of ongoing discussions between the parties involved in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the British and Irish Governments which, in their wisdom, decided that the six bodies listed in the Bill should be established to implement the next phase of the Good Friday Agreement.
With regard to licensing and standards in the unapproved sector, the accommodation sector has grown by 15 per cent during the past 12 months. There is major competition in the sector and the market is dictating developments. It is interesting – I do not intend to be derogatory to any sector by saying this – more complaints are made in respect of the licensed sector than the unlicensed sector. I remind the Deputy that one dissatisfied customer can do more damage than 20 satisfied customers. Ninety per cent of dissatisfied customers will not return.
That highlights the need for quality control.
I do not see Bord Fáilte as a mattress inspector. Its role is to market the country.
How many unregistered bed and breakfast establishments are there in the country? What is the position in other European countries with regard to premises which open their doors to guests? The Minister indicated that the number of complaints about unregistered premises is far lower than that for registered premises. Does he agree that many of them relate not to the standard of the premises but, as indicated in a recent article, to the lack of friendliness? Is it his intention to direct unregistered bed and breakfast establishments to register with Bord Failte or one of the other organisations involved? Are they still free to put up a sign and keep guests?
Success breeds complacency. I agree that, in general, complaints do not relate to the standard of accommodation provided in bed and breakfast establishments or hotels but to the inclination to take visitors for granted. Ninety per cent of dissatisfied visitors will not return. It is the wish of many visitors who stay in bed and breakfast establishments to mingle with the family in an Irish atmosphere but this is no longer possible in many instances because of the increase in standards.
I do not have the information sought on the approximate number of unregistered bed and breakfast establishments but will obtain it for the Deputy, if she so wishes. There is no point in introducing a licensing system if one is not in a position to police it. This would require huge resources which would have to be diverted from other areas.
I encourage unregistered premises to register because of the benefits that would accrue. I intend to pursue certain ideas. I will not allow unregistered premises to avail of benefits introduced in future budgets willy nilly. They will have to be registered for a certain number of years.
The Minister indicated that the number of complaints about registered premises is higher than that for unregistered premises. Does that imply that the system of inspection is unsatisfactory and, if so, does the Minister have plans to change it? There is self-regulation.
Complaints are few and far between because the standard is exceptionally high. We are in a position to pursue registered premises as they are known to us.
The Minister is unable to give a breakdown. The informed opinion within the industry is that there are as many unregistered guesthouses as there are registered. The Minister appears complacent in his attitude to standards. He referred in a flippant way to the mattress inspectors of Bord Failte and the need for resources. The issue of fragmentation in the organisations which deal with the industry must be addressed. The principle appears to be that if it is everybody's business, it is nobody's business. How does the Minister envisage the industry being managed? There is no co-ordination of the efforts of Bord Fáilte, the regional tourism organisations, Leader groups, partnership companies and local authorities.
The market dictates the standard which is excellent. If one fails to meet it, one is not at the races. Ninety per cent of dissatisfied visitors will not return. There are many independent bodies but the beauty of it is that they are interdependent. This increases competition.
I am talking about the State funded bodies involved – Bord Failte, the regional tourism organisations, Leader groups, partnership companies and local authorities. There is duplication. The regional authorities have not been given the necessary financial and manpower resources to deliver a service.
I was the first Minister to give the regional authorities funding last year. They had not had a penny until then. They are identifying the markets in Europe and the United States from which their regions can benefit. I agree we do not want overlap, but they were starved prior to this.
Would the Minister agree that while there are many incentives for hotels, self-catering centres and hostels, there are no incentives for bed and breakfasts? Perhaps he might consider this aspect because that is where the difficulty lies.
I would like to see incentives for bed and breakfasts. However, a 15 per cent explosion in the level of accommodation means that increasing numbers are becoming involved in the sector. Their incentive is the realisation of the potential of the country as a tourism destination. Grant aid was provided previously in terms of room extensions, etc. but it was abused when, a couple of years after the payment of grants, signs were removed. It is difficult to give grant aid assistance in this area.
I understand the problems in the bed and breakfast, farmhouse and self-catering sectors. They lost out because of the absence of a proper marketing fund. That is why last month I initiated a £300,000 marketing fund for overseas, especially Europe. We can benefit from the congestion in Europe. I have said that people in Milan, Berlin and France do not want to travel to cities; they want to get away from it all. I am trying to sell Ireland as the antidote to European stress.
In his use of words like "antidote to stress" the Minister has paid a great deal of lip service to standards, but how can he guarantee them in the unregistered sector?
The market will dictate standards.
