COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, June 14, 2021

QUESTION NO. 25

QUESTION: Councillor C. O'Connor

To ask the Chief Executive to confirm if he is developing a new Tourism Plan for our County for the post lockdown period, will he appreciate the importance of the issue and make a statement.

REPLY:

The tourism, hospitality and creative sector have been among the worst affected sectors by the COVID-19 pandemic with tourism, museums, galleries and visitor experience businesses closed for lengthy periods. Consumer research undertaken by Fáilte Ireland during the pandemic has shown that the public and visitors remain interested in our key urban centres, but anxieties regarding personal safety continue. Level 5 restrictions had prevented indoor and outdoor activities, impacting on events and the event/creative sector. Despite recent and planned easing of restrictions, many remain and some parts of the tourism and hospitality sector are still not fully operational. It is in this context that Fáilte Ireland have provided a suite of focussed supports for the sector, which includes the €4,000 outdoor accessories grant which is being administered locally by the Council.

The Council’s Tourism Strategy, 'A Tourism Strategy for South Dublin County 2015-2020' was due to be reassessed during this time of upheaval in the tourism and hospitality sector however it was deemed prudent to hold off in this task until there was some certainty in how the sector would look following the easing of restrictions and health measures.

The Council is taking this opportunity to continue, where possible, to progress and implement items in the Tourism Strategy which were curtailed during the past 16 months.

A new tourism strategy for South Dublin will be developed and will guide the future development of tourism in South Dublin County. It will build upon the work undertaken during the first strategy and include a range of actions based on a full analysis of the tourism potential of the County. The Council expects to engage with relevant stakeholders to commence discussions around developing a renewed tourism strategy for the County when the conditions allow