One of Ireland's top hotel operators has described hotel planning in the capital as 'an absolute joke', saying, 'we could put 300 rooms in [our new hotel but] Dublin doesn’t like height and Dublin doesn’t like innovation', reports Fora.ie.
Speaking at the Annual Tourism Workshop in Dromoland Castle, Dalata deputy chief executive Stephen McNally commented that height restrictions imposed by Dublin City Council planners has resulted in a number of new hotels not being built and that while there are sites available "the yield on the sites is not high enough to do it".
McNally also responded to comments from Siptu general president Jack O'Connor, who suggested removing the 9 per cent VAT rate for Ireland's tourism sector, saying, "It doesn’t add up […] If we let Siptu run the country, we would die. Siptu have been having a go at hotels since 2011."
Minister for Tourism Shane Ross wasn't immune from criticism either, with McNally saying that Ross didn't "get" the industry, as well as being unsure about how well the Minister and his advisers are "able to fight for tourism".
