The decline in the number of foreign visitors to destinations in the west and south of the country has encouraged Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism O'Donoghue to sanction structural reforms.
Fáilte Ireland, the National Tourism Development Authority, is being given responsibility for the administration and marketing of the regions in a change to local structures that date back to 1964. The changes were recommended in a PricewaterhouseCoopers report and the new arrangements are expected to be in place for the 2006 season.
Not everybody is happy. But, in an industry where competition is the life-blood of development, that is no bad thing. In some regions vested interests at board level had become so powerful that local considerations, rather than visitor requirements, were taking precedence. The new structures are designed to integrate regional development with national policy and to end the fragmentation of effort and marketing that existed across a large number of promotional activities.
Changing administrative structures will not, of itself, attract more tourists. But it can help. In the world of the internet and independent travellers, an integrated and easily accessible system of marketing and information is hugely important. According to Fáilte Ireland, almost 50 per cent of holidaymakers now use the internet to plan their vacations. Half of all visitors found the cost of living - and particularly the price of eating and drinking - more expensive here than they had expected. Widespread littering, poor quality roads and uncertain weather were other complaints. But, overall, they were pleased with the quality of their experiences.
If the Government is serious about addressing the fall in tourist numbers in the Border, Midlands and West regions, it must provide better and safer motoring access. A western road corridor, from Donegal to Kerry, would be a good start. Such an initiative would also facilitate growth in domestic tourism, which already generates two-thirds of the hotel bed nights sold outside of Dublin.
The Irish tourism industry is hugely important. It employs almost a quarter of a million people; generates more than €5 billion in revenue and attracts about 6½ million foreign visitors. But it is in trouble.
Last year, when inflation was taken into account, individuals spent less than in 2003. The overall number of tourists rose by 2.6 per cent. But this growth reflected short-stay visitors to Dublin and masked a sharp fall in numbers to traditional locations. For the first time in decades, the number of British tourists actually fell. Mr O'Donoghue has a serious problem on his hands.