Mr.Hazzard said:
‘This review is very welcome provided that it actually looks at the best possible delivery mechanisms for the promotion and development of the tourism sector, indeed Sinn Féin has argued for some time that 13 different bodies promoting tourism across Ireland is not the best model for delivery.
‘When people around the world look at potential destinations to visit, they look at Ireland as a single location and not two separate places. It is vital that our tourism promotion bodies embrace this reality and promote the island and all its attractions as a whole.
‘If attractions like the Boyne Valley, the Ring of Gullion, the Mournes and the Quoile estuary were packaged as a single destination, more and more people would strongly consider coming here on holidays.’
Mr.Hazzard has also called on the Minister to give serious consideration to the future decentralisation of Tourist Board jobs and services to the Down area.
“If the Minister’s review decides there is a future for a northern based Tourist body, then it is incumbent upon her to look seriously at utilizing the world class facilities at the Down Public Sector Campus in Downpatrick.
“The recent decision by Agriculture Minister Michelle O’Neill to move DARD Fisheries Office to the Down area has been a great boost to the local area already; hopefully Minister Foster will bear this in mind
