{"id":26418,"date":"2022-05-30T09:55:00","date_gmt":"2022-05-30T13:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=26418"},"modified":"2022-06-01T11:58:44","modified_gmt":"2022-06-01T15:58:44","slug":"varadkar-says-more-hotels-needed-around-ireland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=26418","title":{"rendered":"Varadkar Says More Hotels Needed Around Ireland"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The T\u00e1naiste said the shortage of hotel rooms was not due to the housing of Ukrainian refugees (PA)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

T\u00e1naiste Leo Varadkar has said people who argued years before that new hotels should not be built in Dublin were \u201cwrong\u201d, and that more hotels are needed around the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While in Cork for the announcement of 50 jobs created by timber frame manufacturer Cygnum on Friday, Mr Varadkar also asked hoteliers not to overcharge customers amid a high demand for hotel rooms as tourism begins to \u201csnap\u201d back after the Covid-19 emergency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It comes after attention was drawn to the issue of limited hotel capacity following a media report that members of the Oireachtas slept in their cars after not being able to find an affordable hotel room in Dublin city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The enterprise minister asked that hoteliers \u201cdon\u2019t engage in overcharging\u201d, saying that how customers are treated by hotels would be a factor the Government considers when deciding whether to put the special 9 per cent VAT rate for hospitality back up again next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also said that the shortage of hotel rooms was not due to the housing of Ukrainian refugees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a shortage of hotels in Ireland, particularly in Dublin and our cities,\u201d Mr Varadkar said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think the fact that we\u2019re accommodating so many people from Ukraine really is the cause

cialis uk<\/a><\/div> , it\u2019s only about 5 per cent in Dublin or 9 per cent around the country so it wouldn\u2019t be fair I think to put it all down to the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a general shortage of hotel accommodation in Ireland. It wasn\u2019t that long ago that people were saying we shouldn\u2019t build any new hotels in Dublin. They were wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important that we continue to increase the supply of hotels around the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome of it though is this pandemic phenomenon of demand snapping back. Demand was depressed for a long time, now everyone is travelling again, concerts are back on, events are back on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt will settle to a certain extent. But one thing I would say to hoteliers in the meantime, while there might be a shortage of accommodation space in your hotels, don\u2019t engage in overcharging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Government took a decision not to put the 9 per cent VAT rate back up, when it comes to look at that again next year we don\u2019t want to have to put it back up again, how customers are treated will be a factor we take into account in making that decision. And also bear in mind what happened 10 or 15 years ago when the Irish tourism industry got a bad tourism reputation internationally for overcharging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe price was paid a few years later.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Varadkar also said the Government was \u201cof course\u201d examining ways to help the public further with the rising cost of living, particularly on areas where costs can be managed in a \u201csustainable way\u201d \u2013 such as the cost of childcare, medicines and third-level education.<\/p>\n

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