I will take this matter on behalf of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Peter Burke. I thank Deputy McCormack for raising this important matter. The Minister, Deputy Burke, and I share his deep concern for those staff and their families in County Offaly who are impacted by the decisions of the companies. In January 2025 , Nelipak Healthcare of Clara, County Offaly, announced that it had undertaken an analysis of sales forecasts and operational needs in the UK and Ireland, and a decision was made to recommend up to 40 redundancies. This reorganisation is a post-Covid-19 correction following a return to pre-Covid volumes and a need to reduce budgets. Staff were notified by the company of its decision, and a formal collective redundancy process is under way, with the first redundancies expected to take place at the end of February 2025. Nelipak Healthcare operates a second Irish facility in my home county of Galway, which is not affected by this decision. This is very disappointing news for Clara, where this facility has provided valuable employment for 30 years. Our sympathies are with those effected by this announcement in what is a very difficult time for them all. In response, the Government is on hand to support those workers. Our agencies will work to support the employees affected in the period ahead as they pursue alternative employment. This will include sharing the skills profiles of impacted employees with companies that may be hiring, be that with multinationals in IDA client bases or indigenous companies through Enterprise Ireland. In parallel, the IDA continues to engage with Nelipak Healthcare senior management to assist the company, which has indicated that it is committed to supporting affected employees. The IDA will also provide introductions to companies that are recruiting locally and support services for staff affected. As a country we are close to full employment. The economy is well diversified, with hundreds of thousands of people employed in indigenous SMEs, pharmaceuticals, agrifood, medtech and financial services. As the Deputy said, however, we cannot be complacent. We have to watch our costs. Ensuring a strong continued pipeline of foreign direct investment is a core objective of this Government and to that end, Ireland’s proposition for foreign direct investment remains competitive. This is demonstrated by the IDA’s results for 2024, which show that Ireland secured 234 investment wins, delivering a record level of research and development investment as IDA clients committed €1.9 billion across 64 investments. These investments are projected to create 13,500 jobs over coming years. The results also show strong balanced regional development throughout 2024 with 59% of the FDI investments in locations outside of Dublin. As a person who comes from rural Ireland and with the Deputy coming from the midlands, it is important that we have regional investment and regional balance in our development.

Sentiment score: 0.26

It is 59%, not 50%-----

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-----which is closer to two thirds than half. I do agree with the Deputy, though. We need to have more of it, and we need to see it on the ground. Ireland continues to be seen as a location of choice for new investors as well as long-established companies that choose to further invest in substantial expansions of their operations here. That is borne out in the IDA report from last year. In 2024, direct employment in IDA client companies stood at more than 300,000 people nationally for the third year in a row despite some downsizing in the tech sector. Ireland still offers a competitive, consistent and transparent corporate tax regime, good access and connectivity and an excellent return on investment as well as being an attractive environment where people can live and work. The Government is fully aware of the competitiveness challenge the country faces as it competes for foreign direct investment. As we are taking the necessary steps to position Ireland for the future, we will continue to place cost, planning, energy and research and development at the centre of our forward looking policymaking, all reflected in policy commitments in the new programme for Government. Just yesterday, the Minister, Deputy Peter Burke, launched the IDA's new strategy for the coming five-year period. The timing is opportune as we face into uncertain times. Central to the IDA's new strategy is an emphasis on partnering with its existing 1,800 clients, employing more than 3,000 people across this country, to identify opportunities and safeguard and strengthen long-term investment in Ireland. The strategy also affirms the IDA's unrelenting focus on the regions. Building on the excellent performance over the previous strategy, the IDA is targeting 55% of the investments to regional locations in the next five years. As a regional representative like Deputy McCormack, we will work to make sure that is not just speak but that it is actually implemented. We will keep on that. I thank the Deputy.

Sentiment score: 0.26

I thank the Deputy for raising this question. It is interesting from a rural TD perspective to find out what is actually happening in the Deputy's constituency with drones and the delivery of fast food. As he said, it is new. From an aviation safety perspective, the regulation of both the recreational and commercial use of drones, or unmanned aircraft systems as they are technically called, is provided for under European Union regulations that are directly applicable in Ireland. Two drone-specific EU regulations ensure drone operations across Europe are safe and secure. The two regulations, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 and the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947, set out common rules for the regulation of drones and drone operators, including training, licensing and registration. Regulation 2019/947 sets operational rules that apply to both professional drone operators and those flying drones for leisure. Regulation 2019/945 sets the common EU-wide technical requirements for drones, the features and capabilities drones must have to be flown safely and, at the same time, help foster investment and innovation in this sector through a harmonised framework across the European Union. The aim of the EU drone regulations is to achieve the same level of safety for drone operations as in manned aviation. The Irish Aviation Authority, the civil aviation regulator, oversees the implementation of the EU drone regulations and standards. The drone regulations are operation-centric and focus on the risk of drone operations, so regulation is lighter on low-risk operations and more demanding on higher risk operations. Under the EU regulatory regime, drone operations are classified into three broad categories: open, specific and certified, with different regulatory considerations applied across each category. As one would imagine, commercial drone delivery operations are heavily regulated. Drone delivery operations like those in Dublin 15 fall into the medium-risk "specific" category, which requires specific authorisation by the IAA. This type of authorisation is recognised in all EU member states. To obtain an operational authorisation, an operator must provide a comprehensive safety portfolio, which includes assessing and addressing both ground and air risks with appropriate mitigations. These might include, for example, co-ordination with air traffic control, fitting the drone with a parachute and flight termination system, and dynamically routing away from more densely populated locations. At a national level, SI 24 of 2023 Irish Aviation Authority (Unmanned Aircraft Systems (Drones)) Order 2023, came into force on 2 February 2023, replacing an earlier drones order. It restates the investigative and enforcement powers of the IAA and provides for arrangements between An Garda Síochána and the IAA in the enforcement of EU drone regulations. It also includes a section on privacy rights which draws the attention to drone operators to prepare a data protection impact assessment, where required, in accordance with the EU general data protection regulation. In addition to complying with EU drone regulations, drone operators must also comply with national laws, including environmental, planning and, as I mentioned, privacy laws. On top of the two EU drone regulations I outlined earlier, there is also a European regulatory framework, comprising Regulations (EU) 2021/664, 2021/665 and 2021/666, that allows for the safe development of the drone services market, including drone delivery, and the integration of drones into our airspace.

Sentiment score: 0.20

The Deputy mentioned a question about planning and whether it is required. It is a matter for the planning authority. If somebody has a commercial enterprise in a location, they have to have planning permission for it. That is coming from the experience of working on the council for a number of years. Aviation is a highly regulated industry and there is a comprehensive legislative framework in place at both EU and national level to regulate safe drone operations. The rapid pace of drone innovation and commercialisation has created challenges. I agree with that. The Government is aware that the impact of a growing drone sector with an increasing volume of drone operations needs to be further considered. The programme for Government includes a commitment to finalising and implementing a policy framework to guide high-level strategic planning and development of the drone sector in Ireland through supporting growth and innovation while ensuring safe and secure operations and managing environmental and other concerns. The policy framework recognises the importance of collaboration and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders. The foundation of the policy framework is cross-government engagement and it is informed by public and industry consultation. A public consultation was held in 2024. The consultation sought feedback from the public on several key areas, including how to respond to public concerns about the increased use of drones, as the Deputy has mentioned, how to position Ireland as a potential front-runner in the emerging sector, and how to future-proof responsible development of the drone industry. The policy framework seeks to strike a balance between realising the benefits of the development and uptake of new technologies and the risks they can cause. It is envisaged this policy document will be published in the coming months. In the meantime, the IAA, as the civil aviation safety regulator, will continue to oversee drone operations throughout the State to ensure the operations are safe and comply with the EU regulations. I accept that this is a growing industry. We need to make sure we get in there early to ensure it is managed properly and that people's privacy is not invaded.

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I thank Deputy Geoghegan for raising a very important issue we need to get to grips with. I am responding on behalf of the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media pending the formal transfer of functions, following Government formation. There are currently no plans to introduce a tourist tax or visitor accommodation levy but the Minister’s understanding and his view is that the introduction of such a levy would need careful consideration given the importance of inbound tourism to Ireland’s economy, local communities and the paid visitor accommodation sector. A visitor accommodation levy would have to take account of issues, such as who would pay. For example, would its application be limited to international visitors or would it be extended to all visitors, including domestic visitors? The geographic scope of such a measure would also be an issue for consideration. Other issues arising include: scoping, identification and collection of relevant verifiable visitor data; collection of data regarding paid accommodation providers and their bed stock; the levy collection mechanism; the levy collector; and the potential administrative impact on paid accommodation providers. How the revenue raised from such a levy could be applied would also require close examination. It is noteworthy that the introduction of a visitor accommodation levy was proposed in Foundations for the Future, the report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare published in September 2022 and more recently in Capital City, the report of the Dublin city task force published in October 2024, specifically for Dublin city. The Foundations for the Future Report in recommending the introduction of an accommodation tax stated: Accommodation or city taxes (also referred to as tourist or transient visitor taxes) are largely focused on tourism or accommodation providers, and are typically levied on short-term stays in paid accommodation. Across Europe, including in for instance Paris, Berlin and Vienna, such taxes are applied to hotel accommodation in addition to VAT. Such taxes have been introduced across the globe in response to tourism consumption and the pressures it places on the provision of public goods and services. Consumers are generally responsible for paying such taxes, while the accommodation facility is responsible for collecting them. Tourists and other visitors get a short-term benefit from public goods and services, such as water and sewerage systems, utilities, waste facilities, parks, security and public safety services, without having contributed to their funding. The rationale behind an accommodation tax is to ensure that those guests contribute to the ongoing costs of providing these goods and services. Depending on their design, accommodation taxes may also make the tourism industry more sustainable by providing a revenue stream that can improve environmental and economic sustainability as well as improving infrastructure. An accommodation tax can be regarded as an adaptation of the general ‘polluter-pays principle’ to a ‘user-pays principle’ that calls upon the user of resources (i.e. the tourist) to bear the cost in a more sustainable way. The Capital City report included the introduction of a tourist tax as one of a range of possible funding mechanisms “that could be leveraged to support implementation of this plan ringfenced for the city.” It also acknowledged that “Any decision on fundraising is a matter for government and is outside the remit of the Taskforce.” The recommendations of the latter report in full are now being considered by an interdepartmental group led by the Department of the Taoiseach and including officials from the Department.

Sentiment score: 0.19

Tourism is the largest indigenous industry in Ireland and a major driver of regional growth and employment. Visitor accommodation capacity is a key infrastructure element underpinning the tourism offering, located, as it is, in every region and county. The visitor accommodation business provides significant employment, supporting livelihoods, families and sustainable local economies. The programme for Government, Securing Ireland's Future, comprehensively sets out the Government's ambitious plan to strengthen and enhance the tourism sector, ensuring a balanced regional spread of tourism throughout the country, working to develop long-term, sustainable and well-paid careers in tourism, working with local authorities and national bodies to improve public transport options and its infrastructure to key tourism locations making travel more convenient for visitors, conducting a review of the national aviation policy to maximise the use of our airports and through many other focuses. The Department is pursuing high-quality and high-value outcomes for tourism through the deployment of sound and sustainable policies. Within that policy framework, the Government will make decisions on any proposals emerging from the group examining the Capital City report. The issue the Deputy has raised in the Chamber this afternoon is one of a number being considered by that working group. The Minister’s expectation is that this group will put forward a suite of topics shortly for the responsible Departments to tease out further and work up into substantive proposals, as appropriate. The Minister has advised that he looks forward to considering any such proposals that reach his desk or to making observations on any other related proposals that are brought to Government by his ministerial colleagues.

Sentiment score: 0.23