Vol. 454 No. 4
64 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade if he has satisfied himself that he and his officials, together with Bord Fáilte are getting the full co-operation of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board in relation to cross-Border tourism activities and the promotion of tourism on the island as a whole. [10831/95]
Unequivocally, I would like to place on record my full satisfaction with the level and quantity of co-operation which both my Department and Bord Fáilte receive from our Northern Ireland counterparts in promoting both cross-Border tourism activities and tourism for the island of Ireland.
As the Deputy will know, co-operation between Bord Fáilte and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board has been ongoing, with success, for many years. The peace process has opened up huge new windows of opportunity linked with a trouble-free island of Ireland and I am delighted to say that the promotion of the island of Ireland concept is already well advanced.
The £6.3 million overseas tourism marketing initiative, a private sector led consumer marketing campaign, promotes the island of Ireland as a single destination in our four most important markets, namely the US, Britain, Germany and France. For the first time, the tourism industry on both sides of the Border, together with Bord Fáilte and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board, under the chairmanship of my Department, are participating in the initiative and are selling the island of Ireland as an attractive holiday destination.
Another recent example of the excellent collaboration which now exists is the unified approach by my Department and the Northern Ireland Department of Economic Development, by the two tourist boards and by industry North and South, at the Washington conference. My Department and the Department of Economic Development, in co-operation with the two tourist boards and the US Department of Commerce, are currently considering ways to progress the Joint Tourism Communiqué which I signed at that conference.
In addition, my Department and the Department of Economic Development are now quite advanced in a process to explore even further ways of improving and building on the solid basis for co-operation that has already taken place.
