Fáilte Ireland has made a number of recommendations to the government about supports for the tourism and hospitality sectors.
The national tourism development authority has also established a special business supports taskforce, the purpose of which is to focus solely on supporting the tourism industry during the COVID-19 crisis.
The recommendations made by Fáilte Ireland to the government include measures to support business sustainability and employment as well as initiatives designed to kick-start demand. Fáilte Ireland is working closely with tourism businesses to provide advice on drawing down government support packages, cashflow management and liquidity, and managing cancellations and supplier relationships.
At the beginning of March, Fáilte Ireland established a COVID-19 advisory group that is comprised of industry and government officials.
Fáilte Ireland CEO Paul Kelly stated, "We fully support ministers Ross and Griffin's proposals for immediate measures to stabilise cash flow, liquidity and working capital for tourism and hospitality businesses. We are looking at a wide range of supports, and those discussions are ongoing. Government acknowledges the urgency in providing the supports for the industry which are needed in a matter of days."
Actions Taken To Support Businesses
Actions taken by Fáilte Ireland to support businesses in the tourism and hospitality sectors and help minimise the spread of the COVID-19 virus include:
• a briefing by the Department of Health to the tourism and hospitality sectors, facilitated by Fáilte Ireland;
• a roll out of webinars with expert advisors to be hosted on failteireland.ie;
• the establishment of a designated e-mail for tourism businesses for questions - [email protected] - as well as a phone number: 1800 242 473;
• the establishment of a dedicated webpage for industry-relevant news and support;
• and the submission of proposals to the government for a kick-start campaign, at the appropriate time.
Cancellation Of Fáilte Ireland Activity
Much of Fáilte Ireland's usual activity has been postponed or cancelled with immediate effect. Travel and tourism trade fair Meitheal 2020 has been cancelled; Fáilte Ireland’s new domestic marketing campaign, "Keep Discovering", has been paused; tourism information centres throughout the country have been closed; all international media trips to Ireland have been postponed; and all scheduled face to face training programmes and workshops have been cancelled and will be replaced by digital learning workshops targeted at helping businesses manage their most urgent needs.
An "Incredibly Resilient" Industry
Kelly asserted, "It is important to acknowledge that while this is a deeper crisis for the industry than any other, the Irish tourism industry has shown itself to be incredibly resilient and will bounce back."
© 2020 Hospitality Ireland – your source for the latest industry news. Article by Dave Simpson. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.
