Tipperary hotels and guesthouses today renewed their call on the Government to retain the 9% tourism VAT rate given the current difficult trading environment.
The tourism industry is estimated to have attracted €120M in revenue to the county in 2022 helping to support almost 5,500 jobs.
The Government intends to increase the rate to 13.5% on March 1st.
Tourism Minister Catherine Martin is asking that the lower rate be retained as the sector faces economic slowdowns in key overseas markets, escalating business costs, the impact of inflation on discretionary consumer spending and the uncertainty in the travel trade caused by the war in Ukraine.
57% of Irish Hotel Federation members report reduced bookings from Great Britain which has traditionally been Ireland’s largest source market for overseas visitors.
It is estimated that energy costs for the average hotel are now running at 10-12% of total revenue compared with an average of 4% in 2019. Hotels have also experienced average increases of 25% in the cost of food supplies, 16% in beverage costs, 30% in linen/laundry costs and insurance costs up 18%.
The IHF wants the Government to support the sector as it benefits all areas of Ireland especially rural areas and says a thriving sector will pay for itself in terms of visitor spend and job maintenance.
