Cups of coffee in some five star hotels cost more than an ordinary pint, the Minister for Tourism, Dr McDaid, said. "A cup of coffee, believe it or not, in some areas of the city will cost £4," he said. "I've also received complaints about £10 being charged for two cups of tea and a light biscuit, and £8 for a bowl of soup and a roll."

The Minister was warning people involved in the upmarket tourism sector that he is concerned about pricing standards. Dr McDaid was replying to a question from Fine Gael's tourism spokesman, Mr Bernard Allen, who expressed concern about unapproved accommodation. "The standards of these unapproved areas which you speak of have not been causing any major alarm," the Minister said. "As a matter of fact, I have received far more complaints about standards in five star areas than I have about unapproved accommodation."

Mr Allen said that in a £3 billion industry employing 100,000 people "we have 5,000 approved premises with a capacity of 47,000 beds, and 12,000 unapproved premises with a 40,000-bed capacity."

"What steps is the Minister taking to safeguard standards and protect our image as a quality tourist destination?"

Dr McDaid said he was following the same policy as successive administrations.