Tourism growth
Senator Terry Brennan celebrates strong 2013 visitor figures, attributing growth to measures including the 9% VAT rate, visa waiver scheme and The Gathering.
I acknowledge the tourism figures issued this morning from the Central Statistics Office. There were 7 million visitors to Ireland in 2013, an increase of 7.2% on the figure for the previous year. There were 1.2 million visitors from North America, an increase of 13.9%. These exceeded the record figures in 2008. I am glad to relate all of the main overseas markets grew last year. The number of visitors from Great Britain increased by 5.6%, while the number from mainland Europe increased by 4.9%. The number of visitors from long-haul destinations increased by 15%. To compare the last three months-----
Comment on this
We will have a debate, but the figures are so welcome they should be mentioned during Seanad business. Decisions taken by the Government such as retaining the 9% VAT rate, on the Irish visa waiver scheme introduced by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Alan Shatter, The Gathering initiative and achieving value for money all helped to encourage more visitors to come to the country. I hope the momentum will last for the coming year.