Sandra McLellan
Question:10. Deputy Sandra McLellan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the reason the route of the Wild Atlantic Way does not follow the whole coast of the Atlantic. [36774/14]
View answerWednesday, 1 October 2014
Questions (10)
Oral answers (8 contributions)
I will take this opportunity to wish the new Ministers well in their new roles. The Wild Atlantic Way is a beautiful, idyllic and innovative tourist attraction. As Ireland's first long-distance touring route, it is a wonderful initiative and has great potential for expansion. Why does the Wild Atlantic Way not follow the entire Atlantic coast?
While my Department provides the capital funding for investment in tourism projects such as the Wild Atlantic Way, it is not directly involved in developing or managing them. The development of the Wild Atlantic Way is a matter for the board and management of Fáilte Ireland. It is important to note that the Wild Atlantic Way was developed specifically for the western seaboard to address the decline in international visitors to the region. It builds on what is distinctive and appealing about the west coast - its rugged coastline and powerful ocean - to give it visibility in a congested international tourism market. The route was developed with the assistance of tourism consultants and regional steering groups. The steering groups comprised Fáilte Ireland, local authorities, local Leader and development companies and other key agencies such as Údarás na Gaeltachta and the Western Development Commission.
Fáilte Ireland is developing a similar unifying tourism proposition for counties in the east and the south. These areas share a strength in the richness of their historic environment, including Viking Waterford, Mediaeval Kilkenny and Brú na Bóinne. This is a work in progress and it is intended to form a complementary tourism proposition to the Wild Atlantic Way. The brand proposition will group the cultural and heritage tourism assets and experiences in the east and the south via a network of routes, trails and journeys in a new tourism experience that can easily be understood by and will appeal to overseas visitors. It is intended that the research, brand development and consumer testing will be completed during 2014 and the new proposition will be launched in early 2015.
While I welcome the new initiative, I still believe my constituency of Cork East is missing out on what would be a much needed boost to the local economy. My home town of Youghal is situated at the mouth of the River Blackwater where it meets the Atlantic Ocean. It is a renowned tourist town which is steeped in history. Just half an hour away are the Jameson Distillery in Midleton, Cobh, Fota Wildlife Park, a beautiful golf resort and Titanic Port which the largest liners in the world visit on a regular basis. Does the Minister of State agree that it was a missed opportunity not to have included east Cork in the Wild Atlantic Way? It would have made more sense to include it in the initial marketing of the route. It is a positive brand and already has positive associations. It is impossible to recoup the lost revenue. It is like calling a part of Route 66 something else. East Cork should have been incorporated into the Wild Atlantic Way.
I thank the Deputy. The Wild Atlantic Way has been one of the greatest initiatives undertaken by Fáilte Ireland and I compliment both it and everybody involved in it. This year unbelievable numbers of German, French and other international visitors have travelled on the Wild Atlantic Way. I recently heard a report on RTE - I sometimes wonder if it is always looking for negative stories - during which someone complained that we did not have a south-east initiative.
The Minister of State spends a lot of time briefing it.
The Wild Atlantic Way runs along the west coast. It was put in place because for many years thousands of visitors had been lost to the west coast as there was no initiative to bring them there. This has been a record year in terms of the numbers who have come to the west and the country as a whole. I take the opportunity to say "Well done" to Tourism Ireland, Fáilte Ireland and my Department for the work they have done in the past three years. I met many people in Deputy Timmy Dooley's county of Clare over the summer who told me it was the best year they had had for 20 years. I visited west Cork recently and the discovery points offer a brilliant facility. When the project is finished, it will be fabulous. West Cork is beautiful. The Wild Atlantic Way is a rugged coastline which, I am sorry to say, does not extend to every corner of the country. We have to have what we sell. The area includes counties Clare, Galway and Sligo, but we are examining other facilities in the areas mentioned by the Deputy. That is why we are working in the south east to ensure facilities are made ready and enhanced.
I disagree with the Minister of State. East Cork should have been included in the Wild Atlantic Way. We have a most beautiful coastline and so much to offer in terms of culture and tourism. In times of economic hardship that have affected many small rural businesses it would be a wonderful contribution to have a tourist attraction benefiting as many counties and areas as possible. There is no logical reason we should have a partitionist approach to tourism. Marketing the island of Ireland as a desirable destination makes sense. Has the Minister of State had any communication with government Departments or relevant bodies in the North on expanding the route? Does he agree that it could be cross-Border and incorporate as much of Ireland's beautiful scenery as possible?
As the Deputy knows, Tourism Ireland is an all-Ireland body. We have meetings on a regular basis. The Minister, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, and I have met Ms Arlene Foster, MP, MLA, and the Regional Development Minister, Mr. Conor Murphy, MP, MLA, on many occasions and there is very good co-operation between us. The Giants Causeway outside Derry will be included in the Wild Atlantic Way and the island of Ireland will be sold as such. One part of the island enhances the other; there is nothing wrong with marketing them in a different way. We have many landmarks on the island of Ireland. We have everything to attract visitors to come here, including culture and the rugged landscape of the Wild Atlantic Way. West, east and south Cork all have something to offer. That is why Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland are working on more and more products to encourage thousands of visitors to come to the country. I am glad to say record numbers have come to the country in the first eight months of the year and long may it continue. Over 220,000 people are employed in tourism. The jobs are to be found are in every corner of every county. They are not confined to west Mayo or west Cork but can be located in east Mayo or east Cork. We need to bring visitors to the country and have a good product for them. The discovery and viewing points are being developed. The Government invested €8 million in the project last year, off which €2 million came from Fáilte Ireland. We need more money for capital projects. We want to have the best products in the world to bring people here and create jobs.