The crisis facing the self catering industry in Ireland is not going to be solved by political intervention, Minister for Tourism, Catherine Martin told the Irish Travel Industry Confederation conference in Dublin.
She said: the short-term, um, legislation is not about being anti-rural tourism because we see that 70pc of our jobs in this indigenous industry are in the regions, and it really thrives in rural Ireland. But it’s trying to strike that balance between tourism needs and housing needs. You do see some that there will be a registration system, and people say, “Well, that actually will affect the capacity availability for rural tourism.”
I’m not saying it’s easy; that’s where the planning guidelines are key here, and this has been with the Department of Housing and the minister so that the planning guidelines strike that balance between tourism and housing. Minister Byrne is working on that, and they will be published together with the bill.
Even the industry itself has problems with accommodation for the people who work in the industry, and so there’s a significant issue there. But it’s striking that balance. I said the aim is not to be anti-tourism because it’s in the regions.
The Irish Travel Industry Confederation conference in Dublin attracted 300 leading tourism professionals to the Dublin Royal convention centre to hear the major issues of concern to the industry being discussed.
