I raise the important issue of the shortage and price of rental cars. It is a huge challenge for Irish tourism and a particular threat to rural areas. Consider the amount of money we spend marketing experiences like the Wild Atlantic Way internationally, which are predominantly driving experiences. When tourists cannot rent cars in the country, it puts that investment and a huge number of businesses under pressure and at risk.

I ask for a whole-of-government approach to addressing the issue and that other ideas, such as the hop-on, hop-off service I tried to progress when I was in the Department with responsibility for tourism, will be revisited for the Wild Atlantic Way, as well as better connectivity to all our air and sea ports as points of arrival. This is a big issue which needs an urgent response from the Government.

I thank the Deputy for his question. There is a necessity for all business and service providers to provide value, particularly with the level of support the Government has given over the past 24 months. I acknowledge the concerns the Deputy has raised. We have all been shocked by the scale of the increases in the car rental sector. While neither the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media nor Fáilte Ireland has a direct role in prices, there is broad concern. I will ask the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, to respond to the query on the hop-on, hop-off service as well as the escalating prices.