Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 May 2022
305. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the extent to which she and her Department can assist tourism-related businesses that were negatively affected by Covid-19 to the extent of their closure or dramatic reduction in business; if an audit has been carried out of the number of such businesses affected throughout the country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22606/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra306. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the number of hotels and or restaurants that have permanently closed arising from Covid-19 in Dublin city and throughout the country; the extent to which it is proposed to offer assistance towards their reopening; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22607/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 305 and 306 together.
In Budget 2022, I secured €67.6 million in additional funding for tourism, thereby bringing the overall tourism services budget for 2022 to €288 million. This included €50 million funding for Tourism Business Continuity schemes.
The Tourism Business Continuity Schemes for 2022 are managed by Fáilte Ireland and will support businesses across the tourism sectors that need it most urgently. They will take into account the Government funding that has already been received and the wider context of the horizontal supports provided by Government. The details of the Schemes are as follows:
- The Strategic Tourism Transport Business Continuity Scheme 2022
- The Strategic Ireland-Based Inbound Agents Tourism Business Continuity Scheme 2022
- The Attractions and Activity Tourism Operators Business Continuity Scheme 2022
- The Tourism Accommodation Providers Business Continuity Scheme 2022
There was a €35 million increase in the Tourism Marketing Fund for 2022 to support the delivery of a marketing strategy to help restore inbound tourism to Ireland.
The Budget also included €36.5 million in capital funding for tourism product development for the delivery of enhanced visitor experiences in line with the objectives of the National Development Plan 2021-2030.
Funding was also provided for a range of industry initiatives including a domestic marketing and festival campaign, investment in digital, skills development and staff retention. The tourism sector also benefited from a range of cross-government horizontal measures.
The extension of the reduced 9% VAT rate for the hospitality and tourism sectors, which was announced today by the Minister for Finance, will give the sectors time to rebuild and consolidate after a harrowing two years under Covid-19. The extension will promote business survival and support employment in the industry.
As for the impact of Covid-19 on hotels or restaurants, no specific audit of affected tourism businesses has been carried out; however, according to the Central Statistic Office's recent publication - Business signs of Life series Two: Business Survival 2020 to 2021 - one in ten (10.4%) enterprises trading prior to Covid-19 were at risk of closing at the end of 2021 while Fáilte Ireland advises that there are more hotels on their register in 2022 than in 2021.
