Ar an gcéad dul síos, ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil leis an gCeann Comhairle agus le gach éinne atá ag obair sa Teach seo.

On behalf of the Rural Independent Group, I extend my gratitude and thanks to you, a Cheann Comhairle, Peter Finnegan, Brigid McGlynn, and all the staff, from those we meet at the front gate when we come in, the ushers especially, to the cleaners, secretarial staff, printers, gardaí and everybody else, for looking after us so well in the Thirty-third Dáil. I express my heartfelt thanks.

What do hotels like Racket Hall in Roscrea, Dundrum House Hotel, Hearns Hotel in Clonmel and Kilcoran Lodge Hotel, a beautiful hotel in Cahir, have in common? They form a vein through the centre of Tipperary. The British had a policy of dividing and conquering, but the Government is dividing and conquering the people now. It is dividing the people. Without consultation, and against the will of the people, the Government has forced International Protection Accommodation Service, IPAS, persons into these hotels. The Government has stopped them trading as hotels, which is hugely damaging to the economy. The fact is that there was no consultation whatsoever and the will of the people is being denied. People will have a chance to reflect on what the Government has done to them in three weeks' time. It is shameful the way Tipperary has been treated.

I thank the Deputy.

It is a noble county with noble businesspeople. The good people of Dundrum are still at the gates and will remain there because they have not been consulted. It flies in the face of democracy to spend €446,000 on modular units in Clonmel, which should cost €70,000-----

I thank the Deputy.

-----when the Government cannot house the 15,000 people who are homeless. It is a shameful legacy.

I agree that Tipperary is a most noble county, and a beautiful one, but on the specific issue Deputy McGrath references, the Government has taken a position that in the future it does not want hotels to be used for the purposes of housing asylum seekers. Hotels in towns in particular are a vital piece of the tourism infrastructure. We are endeavouring to create State-owned facilities and accommodation to deal with those coming to the country seeking asylum. It is acknowledged that the use of hotels in the core parts of towns can be detrimental to their economic and tourism development. That is something I believe in, notwithstanding all of the challenges that are coming our way in respect of this issue. Other broader policy issues will be required as well.