This week, Ministers are travelling the globe promoting Ireland and, in particular, promoting Irish tourism. I want to bring to the Tánaiste's attention a contradiction in that Dublin Port Company is developing a policy that will substantially reduce the number of cruise liners coming into the country. The cruise liner business is worth €50 million in revenue. It brings revenue to the retail and hospitality sectors, particularly in Dublin, Cork and Belfast. Other areas, such as Galway, are also anxious to develop it. If the capital is not on the itinerary these other locations will lose out significantly. Dublin Port has said it intends to reduce the number of ships allowed into Dublin from 160 this year to 80 in 2021. It is not good enough for the Government to say it is a matter for the port company. There has to be a cross-sectoral approach to policy for promoting tourism. We have Ministers all over the world asking people to come to Ireland but at the very same time a company of the State-----

Thank you, Deputy.

-----is saying essentially it will not happen and it is going to undermine it. There is a way out of this-----

The time is up, Deputy.

-----but the Government must take a hand in it.

I call the Tánaiste.

I am asking, in the context of the programme for Government, what the Government's response to this will be.

I am very familiar with this issue. It has been raised with me by multiple sources. We have managed to build a cruise liner tourism product in Ireland that has resulted in significant expansion in recent years. We have invested in smaller harbours, such as Killybegs and Dingle, and have attracted a lot of interest from cruise liner traffic in recent years. As Deputy Martin knows, Cork will probably have more than 100 cruise liners this year. Last year, I believe 167,000 people visited the Cork area from cruise liners and we had all the crew on top of this. The figure last year was approximately 80 ships. It is true to say other ports, whether Belfast, Cork, Killybegs, Dingle or wherever, are reliant on Dublin being a significant draw as a capital city and the cruise liners then move to other cities and ports around the island of Ireland. The indication from Dublin Port that it is looking to limit cruise liner traffic in the years ahead is a big worry in terms of the overall strategy on cruise liner tourism. It is something I will raise with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport.

Does he know where Dublin Port is?

I do not want to speak for Dublin Port Company because it needs to make commercial decisions itself.

I thank the Tánaiste. The time is up.

It has pressures it is responding to and, in the context of Brexit, doing so in an extraordinarily efficient way. It had capacity issues it needs to take into account.

Sorry Tánaiste, the time is up.

In this context, as a shareholder of Dublin Port Company, there does need to be a conversation.

More than a conversation.