Vol. 471 No. 1
4 Mr. B. Ahern asked the Taoiseach the number of overseas visitors to this country in each of the years from 1986 to date; if he will give a breakdown of the purpose of each visit; and the revenue earned by this country. [19865/96]
The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the following statement:
Estimated number of overseas visits to Ireland classified by reason for journey and earnings for each of the years 1986 to 1995 and for the period January to March 1996.
|
1986 |
1987 |
1988 |
1989 |
1990 |
1991 |
1992 |
1993 |
1994 |
1995 |
1996(Jan.-Mar.) |
|
|
(Thousands) |
|||||||||||
|
Overseas Visits |
1,813 |
2,039 |
2,345 |
2,732 |
3,069 |
2,997 |
3,128 |
3,333 |
3,681 |
4,256 |
685 |
|
Reason for Journey |
|||||||||||
|
Business |
315 |
354 |
438 |
471 |
507 |
445 |
458 |
497 |
547 |
597 |
161 |
|
Tourist |
641 |
710 |
810 |
1,061 |
1,327 |
1,466 |
1,561 |
1,622 |
1,807 |
2,314 |
253 |
|
Visit to Relatives |
700 |
836 |
919 |
1,020 |
1,059 |
909 |
905 |
980 |
1,031 |
1,014 |
194 |
|
Other |
156 |
139 |
178 |
181 |
175 |
177 |
205 |
233 |
297 |
332 |
77 |
|
(£m) |
|||||||||||
|
Earnings from all Visitors to Ireland |
649 |
731 |
841 |
991 |
1,139 |
1,217 |
1,229 |
1,367 |
1,498 |
1,677 |
265 |
Estimated number of overseas visits to Ireland classified by reason for journey and earnings for the periods January to March for each of the years 1994 to 1996.
|
1994 |
1995 |
1996 |
|
|
(Thousands) |
|||
|
Overseas Visits |
527 |
615 |
685 |
|
Reason for Journey |
|||
|
Business |
128 |
146 |
161 |
|
Tourist |
160 |
203 |
253 |
|
Visit to Relatives |
187 |
205 |
194 |
|
Other |
52 |
61 |
77 |
|
(£m) |
|||
|
Earnings from all Visitors to Ireland |
217 |
244 |
265 |
The estimated figure for April to June 1996 is 1,317.
The Minister of State has not given me any information in his reply. I have to read not only the speech given by the Taoiseach at the Royal Hospital but also information circulated in the Official Report. Given that all the questions on Northern Ireland tabled for answer today were ruled out of order, I cannot raise the matter about which everyone else is speaking.
Will the Minister of State confirm that the policy decisions on tourism contained in the 1987 Fianna Fáil document have been changed? Will he also confirm that there has been an increase in visitor numbers from 1.8 million in 1986 to 4.2 million last year and that the number of overseas tourists — this is more narrowly defined in the statistics — increased from 640,000 to 2.3 million during the same period? Has the Government given any consideration to what will happen after March 1997 when the Fianna Fáil policy on tourism no longer applies? If it has given any thought to this I cannot find one word about it in any speech or article.
The question is mainly a statistical one and clearly matters of policy ought not to arise. However, there is an element of policy in it.
I was not trying to be evasive in my reply; rather I wanted to save the Leader of the Opposition the embarrassment of hearing about the marvellous success story which has been the lot of the Government.
Fairy tales of Ireland.
I will give the Deputy the figures lest he thinks I am trying to be evasive. The figures for overseas visitors are as follows: 1986, 1.813 million; 1987, 2.039 million; 1988, 2.345 million; 1989, 2.732 million; 1990, 3.069 million; 1991, 2.997 million; 1992, 3.128 million; 1993, 3.333 million; 1994, 3.681 million and 1995, 4.256 million. This pattern has been maintained for the three months from January to March of this year with a figure of 685,000. The number of tourists increased from 641,000 in 1986 to 2.314 million.
That is the figure I gave.
The figure increased from 1.622 million in 1993 when the Deputy was in power to 2.314 million in 1995. The figures speak for themselves.
What was the figure for 1994?
As regards policy issues, I would not dare infringe on the remit of my constituency colleague, the very able Minister for Tourism and Trade, Deputy Enda Kenny.
I am glad I was able to reflect the correct figures.
Why is the Deputy asking questions if he knows the answers?
The figure of 640,000 in 1986 was a result of the policies of ruination pursued by the Minister of State's party in Government for five years. Will the Minister of State explain how the 16 per cent growth rate achieved by successive Fianna Fáil led Governments over the past eight years, and now just about maintained, will be continued over the coming years when there is no Government policy on the matter?
This issue is a major concern to all tourism groups. They do not know where the market development fund will come from, what will happen on the capital programme or whether the Minister for Finance will contribute to the fund as did the former Minister for Tourism and Trade, Deputy McCreevy. Given that the Fianna Fáil plan expires in a few months, when will these questions be answered so that those concerned with tourism will know if there is any policy direction?
We are having a debate on what is essentially a statistical question.
The tourism policy of the Government was partly inherited from the previous Government, which poached large tranches of it from the Fine Gael policy document of 1986.
What parts did the Government exclude?
Members of Fianna Fáil have never been original thinkers.
The country was bankrupt in 1986, when the rate of inflation stood at 18 per cent.
Because of 1977.
Let us hear the Minister of State's reply.
The figures speak for themselves and are equally impressive for the first three months of this year. The trajectory is upwards. The end of year results will show that the Government's tourism policy is working. On new tourism policy, I suggest that the Deputy submit an appropriate parliamentary question to my colleague, the Minister for Tourism and Trade, Deputy Kenny.
Will the Minister of State acknowledge the difference between statistics for visitors and for tourists and that the figures he indicated for visitors include those who travel over and back across the Border on the same day. There has been a big increase in that figure since the ceasefires. Will he confirm that one should refer to the "guesstimate" of the number of tourists made by the Central Statistics Office and Bord Fáilte because we do not have an adequate method of calculating the number of paying tourists? There is a gap with regard to tourism planning and a need to do something about it.
We covered this ground approximately three weeks ago when I explained that there are three determinants for calculating the inward and outward flow of tourist numbers. First, the returns from passenger transport companies give the total passenger movement by route of travel. Second, the country of residence survey is used to estimate the distribution, by country of residence, for each route. This survey covered 185,000 inward and 209,000 outward passengers in 1995. Finally the passenger card inquiry is used to estimate, for various areas of residence, the reason for the journey, the length of stay, the expenditure and the fare costs. This survey covered 137,000 inward and 165,000 outward passengers in 1995.
These three sources are combined to provide the quarterly and annual estimates. It is the accepted practice that, using these as the three indicators, we arrive at figures which are largely comparable with those of Bord Fáilte, which are used to gauge our actual tourist figures in addition to other figures. The level of disparity between the two different sets of figures, using two different methodologies, is minimal.
I congratulate the Minister of State on bringing all these people into the country. Dublin is a key area in this. Is he aware that, because of a serious go slow by environmental health officers who issue health certificates to hotels, 12 new hotels have been prevented from being registered and promoted by Dublin Tourism? Will he assist in solving the problem?
That is a separate matter worthy of a separate parliamentary question.
Is cosúil go bhfuil scéal maith á insint ag an Aire Stáit maidir le turasóirí chun na tíre agus an uimhir daoine atá ag taisteal. Cad é an córas atá ann chun idirdhealú a dhéanamh idir na taistealaithe ó Éirinn a bhfuil comhnaí orthu thar lear agus na fíor-thurasóirí a thagann ó thíortha thar lear go dtí an tír seo.
An bhfuil córas ann? An bhfuil sé foirfe agus an féidir linn braith air chun an t-idirdhealú a dhéanamh?
Ar an gcéad dul síos tréaslaím leis an Teachta Dinny McGinley as ucht an chéad cheist ar an chéad lá a bhfuil craoladh beo ar Thráth na gCeisteanna ar Theilifís na Gaeilge. Is ceist an-stairiúil í.
Maidir leis an choras atá á úsáid, mar a mhínigh mé don Teachta Ó Maoildhia, tá trí shlí ina dhéanaimid an meastachán seo. Ar an gcéad dul síos scrudaítear na torthaí ó na comhlachtaí éagsúla a iompraíonn taistealaithe isteach is amach as an tír. Chomh maith leis sin déantar suirbhé an-chuimsitheach a thugann, mar shampla, na figiúirí maidir le daoine a théann amach is a thagann isteach. Is é an tríú modh ná carta fiosrúcháin a scaipeadh i measc paisnéirí a thugann meastachán cruinn is dóigh liom. Ar an gcéad dul síos cuirtear ceist cén fath ar tháinig an duine. An dara cheist ná cén fhaid a bheidh an duine ag fanacht agus an tríú cheist ná cé mhéid airgid a chaith an duine chomh maith le costas taistil, ticéidí agus mar sin dó.
Is it true that a Mayoman who works in London and travels home, as many do, via Knock Airport at weekends, becomes 50 tourists for the purposes of compiling statistics, given that he travels home 50 times per year?
This is a regular and poorly informed controversy. Every time it is raised the tourism or travel statistics are criticised for over stating Irish tourism performance. The argument usually revolves around the question of whether business or leisure travel and, for example, visits to relatives or travel by soccer fans constitute real tourism. They do not.
As I have explained, three clear and distinctive methods are employed. We use figures from the travel companies, both air and sea, because they already have information on the destination of people and the reason for their journey. The country of residence survey covered 185,000 inward and 209,000 outward passengers the purpose of their journey, where they were going and how long they were staying.
That is only a simple survey.
The passenger card inquiry was used in the case of 137,000 inward and 165,000 outward travelling passengers. Taking all the methodology into account, with Bord Fáilte we have compiled very accurate tourism figures.
Does the Minister of State accept that despite the significant increase in the number of tourists, the west is not getting a proportionate increase? Will he ensure his colleague, the Minister for Tourism and Trade, introduces policies to enable the west get a proportionate increase in tourist numbers?
I am loath to bat and field questions for my constituency colleague. Having regard to the number of schemes introduced by the Minister for Tourism and Trade, Deputy Kenny, particularly the seaside tourist resort scheme which is having an enormous impact along the west coast, we can anticipate a considerably more optimistic outlook for the west in the next two or three years compared with the past six or seven.
The Minister of State should ask his brother about that.
