Vol. 450 No. 8
25 Mr. Killeen asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade if it is proposed to establish a North-South body with, inter alia, executive powers to promote, develop and control tourism on an island-wide basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5885/95]
The advent of the peace process has transformed international perceptions of Ireland as a holiday destination and has enabled my Department and its Northern counterpart to encourage Bord Fáilte and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board to work closer together in selling the island abroad. This year the two industries, north and south of the Border, supported by the two tourist boards, have collaborated together in selling the island of Ireland abroad in four principal markets, namely, the US, Britain, France and Germany. It is a welcome step and one which is long overdue.
The development of closer working relationships between Ministers, Departments and tourism agencies, North and South, will be my objective. By co-operating and pooling our resources, we can help to increase our impact in the marketplace and thereby deliver substantial growth to the tourism industry.
My immediate objective is to see that substantial benefits derive from our current co-operative efforts. Success in exploiting our common strengths will help us to undertake more fundamental assessments of our tourism relationships and see what structures are most appropriate for future growth and development. An evolutionary approach, such as I have described, will provide a sound basis for joint work in the future.
The Deputy will, of course, be aware that the recent Framework Agreement proposes a North-South body, comprising elected representatives from, and accountable to, a Northern Ireland Assembly and the Irish Parliament. It is envisaged that this will deal with matters designated by the two Governments in the first instance in agreement with the relevant political parties. While tourism is not specifically mentioned in the framework agreement, the illustrative executive functions identified therein, such as marketing and promotion activities abroad, clearly could comprehend the activity currently undertaken by the two tourist boards. That, however, would be a matter for discussion and possible agreement with the various parties at the appropriate time. The Deputy will also be aware that the lead role in proposals in the framework agreement lies with the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs.
In the meantime, I and my Department plan to continue working with our Northern colleagues at an operational level to improve the prospects for tourism development on the island as a whole.
I welcome the co-operation between the two tourist boards and am glad that it goes beyond applying for and sharing EU funding. Does the Minister intend to further promote this co-operation? Has he had any meetings with the Northern authorities and, if so, what was the outcome?
Deputy Killeen has raised an important point. I availed of the opportunity to meet with my counterpart in the North, Baroness Denton, and we agreed to meet on a regular basis and introduce a number of public cross-Border initiatives. Last week in New York, where there were a number of public functions I invited Mr. Ian Henderson, the chief executive of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board, to be a member of our group. The Deputy can take it that there is very close co-operation between both tourist boards, between me and my counterpart and between the officials of my Department and the relevant Department in Northern Ireland.
Is the Minister concerned about the effect of the devaluation in sterling on the level of co-operation between North and South and the number of Northern tourists visiting the South and the advantage it gives Northern Ireland in terms of joint promotions?
The currency crisis is a separate matter and questions on it should be addressed to the Minister for Finance.
So it is a crisis.
My Department's projections, which were arrived at after careful analysis, lead us to believe that the dividend from the peace process will be approximately £100 million per year, £80 million of which will be generated in Northern Ireland and £20 million of which will be generated in the South. Today Baroness Denton announced new tourist figures for Northern Ireland in terms of northern tourists visiting the South and southern tourists visiting the North. Last year 400,000 visitors from the Republic visited Northern Ireland and 125,000 of these were holiday visitors. She went on to say that there were 15,000 more holiday visitors between September and December of last year than was expected and that this was as a direct result of the ceasefire. Thousands of day visitors also availed of the opportunity to visit Northern Ireland which had been assumed to be off limits for the past 25 years.
