In relation to the improvement grant allocation, I take it that we are still confining the grant to bedrooms and thus continuing to do as we were doing. I admit that we have a new situation in that we are making provision for additional bedrooms but if the grants relate to bedrooms only it is a pity because it would mean that improvements to other areas in hotels and guesthouses will slow down. Also any improvements which take place in other areas would be without the benefit of Bord Fáilte's advice and guidance and that would apply of course to lay-out, quality, operational, planning and architectural consultancy and this will result in developments which have been termed here as insular in their conception. The finish could well be substandard and without adequate regard for the needs of tourists particularly in relation to market standards. The Minister for Health has brought in a hygiene campaign and that could very well be adversely affected if we do not give the necessary financial incentives towards better food preparation and the service areas of hotels.
We hear a lot of talk about energy conservation. Quite a substantial number of our hotels are old buildings and if we are to talk about energy conservation then very large sums of money will have to be found for insulation purposes such as double glazing and so on in these hotels. It is vitally important that grant aid from Bord Fáilte should be provided here.
As I was saying before Question Time, quite a lot of what we have to offer to tourists is based on personal appeal, on what visitors perceive and interpret as what I would call the natural friendliness of the Irish. In my own constituency where we have seaside ports one often sees groups of visitors sitting on the quayside or in the public houses and they are really enthralled with the local Eamon Kelly telling them some local story, which is usually a pack of lies but a good story, and they are really fascinated with this aspect of Irish life, and join spontaneously in the sing-songs in the pubs. This is something that does not have to be paid for. It is something we cannot buy and when we contrast that with what we have all experienced in our limited travels abroad where we have this stilted type of approach, regimental almost, where everything is the same even to the parrot-like approach of the tourist guides who rattle off the same thing every day to 20 different tourist groups and give the impression that they are just doing a job and that they are disgusted with it, we really have something to offer. We have to compare that with our own tourist guides who are so natural and create such a good impression. This is certainly something that we have and that we should cultivate.
In addition we have quite substantial natural resources. We have beautiful beaches, beautiful harbours and a wonderful countryside. We have mountains, rivers and lakes and we have the quiet country roads. This is something that is new to many of our visitors. It is something that they delight in and it is something that we have a great responsibility to preserve. This is why I was making the point that we should work more in harmony with the Department of the Environment. We might be dealing here with a utilitarian department that has to provide water and sewerage facilities and that sort of thing but they sometimes make mistakes. The fact that we pour raw sewage from our towns into our beautiful harbours is something that I should stop and it is something that I would appeal to the Minister to take up with his counterparts. It will cost money of course for treatment plants and so on but in this day and age we should not be proposing to continue the old bad habits into the future. We have to look at this and ensure that it does not happen because, like our Irish characters, like our countryside, these are things that money cannot buy; they are assets. It is not just like some of the European holiday resorts with the bleak, flat uninteresting countryside, the equally uninteresting hotels and their often mediocre beaches. We have all these things and it is my view that they should be developed further. What would America give for Blarney Castle or for some of our dolmens and cromlechs and all the wonderful history attached to Dublin? What would the Americans give for something like Wood Quay and what would they give for the old historical places here? After all, they can only go back as far as the Alamo. This is what they appreciate. Almost every one of them can trace some relationship to somebody in Ireland. They all have a 31st cousin somewhere. They have a love of Ireland. When they come here they are often a little disappointed at our treatment of these historic places and the neglect of our national monuments.
Here again we are hampered by a shortage of funds. Many wonderful castles are badly in need of money to make them safe. In some cases these castles could be fully restored which would be an asset from aesthetic and commercial points of view. We must do all these things if we are serious about tourism. As I said, we are talking about substantial sums of money. In the short term we must have a crash programme but in the long term we will need substantial investment in this area if we are to reap the benefit.
As the Minister said, we have to fight for every tourist. We are in competition with sophisticated marketing people on the mainland of Europe. We must go after the tourists and win them back.
The Minister admitted many hotels are having problems this year. The hotel industry is in a very bad state. Many hotels are facing grave financial problems because of the inability to fulfil their financial commitments to the banks and lending institutions. Last year was a good year and generated improvements in the expectation of a continuation into 1979 and onwards. They were projecting very substantial figures into 1981. They could still be attained but in the interim period we have a problem which this House must face.
People borrowed heavily from their banks and lending institutions on the basis of previous years' figures which were adequate to convince those institutions that they were worthy of credit. These people are very worried about how they are going to pay their bills. Borrowings for improvements and refurbishing were estimated at £9 million. This money was borrowed because the hotels had not built up their capital reserves. Hotels will have to begin renegotiating their repayment terms. Some already had to do this as the cash flow expected from deposits earlier this year did not materialise due to the postal strike.
For example, one hotel which budgeted to receive £10,000 in deposits between January and March received a little over £700. This financial performance will have long-term repercussions. Hoteliers will not be willing to reinvest and, even if they are they will have difficulty in raising the necessary finance. Investment organisations and public companies will tend to find, and rightly so, other areas outside tourism where security and returns are more readily available. This is where we can help by moving in and, where necessary assisting anybody experiencing financial trouble, either by offering to help with the payments or by subsidising interest rates, which was a feature of Bord Fáilte's activities in the past. That was an excellent idea and it would be a big help if it were restored.
Hitherto our tourism was dependent on mobile tourists. Any restrictions on mobility can only have a detrimental effect. It is vital that tourists' needs are protected against petrol and diesel shortages. The Government have taken steps by providing a voucher scheme. It was only by trial and error that we discovered the snags, and there were many. Vouchers were available only in certain areas. Every large town and city should have a tourist office which would distribute these vouchers to tourists. We must look to the future and double the amount of fuel being provided.
In my constituency we see many UK tourists driving very large cars. They may have to change because of the petrol shortage all over the world. The 40 gallons allocated to each tourist is not very much use because he will probably be able to drive only about 1,200 miles. Therefore, I am in favour of doubling that amount forthwith.