Vol. 463 No. 8
147 Mr. Andrews asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade the concerns, if any, he has that seven markets account for in excess of 85 per cent of tourists to Ireland; and the plans, if any, he has to encourage visitors from other locations. [7542/96]
The three main outbound travel markets consisting of the US, Germany and Japan clearly dominate international travel demand, collectively constituting over $110 billion, of the $300 billion spent. Thereafter, the UK, France, Italy, Canada and the Netherlands account for a further $67 billion. These top eight countries together account for over 50 per cent of international expenditure.
Our dependence on seven of these — Japan being the exception — for over 80 per cent of business is not, in my view, an undue dependence on a limited set of markets. It is important to remember that where holiday income is concerned, Ireland has a very healthy spread with just over 40 per cent from mainland Europe and just under 30 per cent each from North America and Britain. In marketing terms this represents a good mix and I would not wish to see a situation of overdependence on any one single market emerge.
