Noel Dempsey
Ceist:28 Mr. Dempsey asked the Minister for Tourism and Trade the plans, if any, he has to initiate legislation to govern unregistered tourist accommodation. [16850/95]
Written Answers. - Tourist Accommodation.
As the Minister has stated a number of times since coming into office he does not propose to introduce a compulsory regulation system for all tourist accommodation. He is not convinced that it would necessarily improve standards to any great extent whilst at the same time giving rise to endless policing and prosecution problems. Of course, the ideal solution would be for all tourist accommodation providers to voluntarily seek approval. He is hopeful that following the restructuring of Bord Fáilte, the associations which have been recognised by the board for the purpose of approving the B&B sector will be successful in persuading more operators of the benefits of being in the approved sector.
There are, of course, obvious disadvantages to operating in the unapproved sector. Unapproved operators do not have access to official marketing through Bord Fáilte and the Tourists Information Offices and my Department and the Department of Finance were careful in the design of the implementation arrangements for the recent Pilot Tax Relief Scheme for Certain Tourist Resort Areas, and the new tranche of subsidised loans for certain Tourism projects, that only approved operators would be eligible.
Unapproved operators are also obliged to comply with requirements, for example, in the areas of taxation, planning, fire and safety and hygiene in the same way as the approved sector.