Recently the UK Government announced changes to the UK visa application process for visitors from China and the Far East.

This is good news for Ireland as it will help to boost the Irish tourism and business sectors. The new visa arrangement will attract more visitors to the United Kingdom from China and the Far East. As a consequence, it is likely that more visitors will come to this country from these areas. This announcement complements the Irish visa initiative which was announced last year by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Alan Shatter. This pro-tourism and pro-business initiative has already proved to be a tremendous success and has led to an increase of 30% in the number of Chinese visitors to Ireland in the last year. The announcement made by the UK Government is most welcome. This initiative will help to attract many thousands of Chinese visitors to this country. It will also help to cement our global position as a top tourism and business destination. It is good news all round.