The Minister of State gave a fairly comprehensive reply to this on 26 November. He said as he indicated in reply to previous questions on this subject Bord Fáilte estimated that up to £60 million per year is spent on a broad definition of tourism marketing funded by the Exchequer, the EU and industry sources. I had a discussion on this matter at the National Tourism Council in the past two weeks. Frank contributions were made by officials of Bord Fáilte and people in the industry. We do not know the levels of funding that will be available post 1999. That was the subject of some discussion yesterday in Brussels where the Taoiseach indicated Ireland's position.
There has been a major growth in the number of hotels in the Dublin area. I would like those hotels, which are commercial ventures, to understand they must put their shoulders to the marketing wheel to sell the facilities abroad. In that sense I hope Government, EU and industry initiatives will ensure the Tourism Brand Ireland concept will continue into the next century. The stock of material available to Bord Fáilte will last for the next three to five years and it will be well worthwhile.
We do not know what will happen post 1999, but we should begin to discuss that now to ensure the tourism industry understands the importance of its place and that we in Government recognise the part the industry is playing and, I hope, will continue to play in an expanded sense in the future.