Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 1 December 2004
68 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism his views on his recent statement (details supplied); his views in this regard especially in relation to the impact of high prices on the Irish tourism industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31416/04]
View answerThe Oxford English Dictionary defines "rip-off" as "cheating someone, especially financially". On that basis, the phrase "rip-off Ireland" clearly conveys the impression that Ireland is, by definition, a cheating destination. It is a phrase that attempts to equate Ireland with cheating. When a phrase like this is propagated throughout the print media, radio, TV and the Internet, it has a corrosive effect on Ireland's image abroad. It works to neutralise and subvert the extraordinarily good work being done by organisations like Tourism Ireland in promoting the island of Ireland abroad.
We need to distinguish between the need to deliver good value for money — which was emphasised as a key priority by the Tourism Policy Review Group — and the misguided and unfair portrayal of Ireland as a cheating destination. There is a real difference between cheating someone and pricing goods or services at a level that some consumers consider unduly high for what is on offer. Sometimes we use words without too much regard to their proper meaning or their ultimate impact.
It is a fact that Ireland is a high price location. It is also a high cost destination. That is a reflection of our rapid economic expansion and our increasing income levels. Tourism is, as we know, a particularly labour intensive industry. However, that is not to say that we cannot, and do not, deliver a high quality, value for money holiday experience to our visitors.
We all recognise the importance of being vigilant in terms of competitiveness, quality and service standards, and customer satisfaction. We need to have regard to the research that has been pointing to growing levels of dissatisfaction in recent years. However, we can still draw some comfort from the 92% of visitors in 2004 who, when surveyed, said that their holiday in Ireland matched or exceeded their expectations and the fact that 75% of them would definitely recommend a holiday in Ireland to a friend.
The main challenge for our tourism industry is competitiveness. We can address that in a number of ways. First, the industry will need to focus on improving its capability and performance in areas such as quality assurance, productivity enhancement, cost and yield management, use of new information and communication technologies, and adoption of best human resource practices. I know that Fáilte Ireland is working to support the industry in this regard. Second, this challenge can be addressed through attractive price and discount offers, imaginatively packaged and marketed to the customer, of which there are many recent examples. Third, the Government must play its part with appropriate macroeconomic policies, improving competition and moderating taxes and charges for public services.
