2026-01-13

113. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment to support the development of a Dublin Bay heritage centre to enhance tourism, protect maritime heritage and increase year-round visitor numbers in Dublin Bay North; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1793/26]

Anocht, ba mhaith liom ceist a chur ar an Aire regarding a heritage centre for north Dublin bay. This would be a single focal point for cultural heritage and would increase the number of year-round visitors to the area. Huge numbers of people already visit north Dublin. We have two castles there. People do not know that with the Guinness family, Bram Stoker and Daniel O’Connell all connected to the area, there is a huge amount of history there. We have loads of sites. Having a heritage centre would be brilliant for tourism and the economy.

I thank the Deputy for his very important question. In December, I launched the Government's new national tourism policy statement, A New Era for Irish Tourism. This sets out our clear vision to 2031 to have balanced product development. Since the move of tourism into my Department, I have reflected that SMEs are at the heart of the Department of enterprise. There are over 46,000 of them. We published the Department’s sectoral plan last week. We have €4.7 billion over the next five years, and €400 million is earmarked for tourism. I also want to enhance the quality and sustainability of our tourism offering, ensuring that Ireland remains a compelling destination for international visitors while supporting local communities and businesses. I should clarify that regional tourism promotion is an operational matter for Fáilte Ireland, in collaboration with local authorities and other tourism stakeholders. Fáilte Ireland recognises the importance of ongoing capital investment in tourism infrastructure and attractions across the country and remains committed to supporting the sustainable development of tourism potential in all areas. I understand that the project being proposed would be a heritage centre that could also be used as a shared community facility. At present, Fáilte Ireland does not operate a capital grant scheme to support such a project. However, when suitable capital schemes are launched, they are open to eligible project promoters nationwide, subject to meeting all scheme criteria being met, including strategic alignment and value for money. I encourage the Deputy to liaise with Fáilte Ireland in relation to schemes that will come forward over the coming year. My colleague the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage has responsibility for the heritage sector. I have been informed that the Heritage Council, which comes under the remit of his Department, operates funding schemes that may be relevant to this project. Separately, Fáilte Ireland has commenced work on the Dublin coast destination and experience development plan. The plan is being developed in close collaboration with local authorities in the region and key agencies, tourism businesses and community stakeholders. Fáilte Ireland is actively promoting and developing marine and coastal tourism in Dublin Bay North through a range of strategic initiatives. A key element of this work is the Dublin coastal trail, launched in 2022, which provides a flagship framework to showcase Dublin's coastline from Skerries to Killiney. The original trail features 11 stops, including Howth, Raheny and Bull Island, with five additional stops planned at Clontarf-Dollymount, Dublin Port, Balbriggan, Donabate and Blackrock.

I welcome the fact that the Minister thinks this is a good idea. It would be brilliant for the economy, local tourism and jobs. I will mention a few things that north Dublin has going for it, namely the Battle of Clontarf, Brian Boru, the two Norman castles, Lord Charlemont and Casino Marino and Daniel O’Connell and the monster meeting that took place in Clontarf in 1843 from which the Irish revolution and the foundation of the State began. I did not know about the latter until I went and met the men and women behind the great organisation involved to discuss giving them a base and a place that would not only be used in the context of heritage but also in respect of arts and anything that would help the local community. St. Anne’s Park is the former home of the Guinness family. We have the main avenue and the Red Stables there. It would be brilliant to bring the community together. From the city out to Howth Head, the area has an extraordinary concentration of heritage. This is something I was not fully aware of until I was educated by Dennis McIntyre, who I commend on his hard work. A heritage centre would support schools, local groups, researchers and visitors alike.

Again, I acknowledge the work Fáilte Ireland is doing on the coastal path, the 11 stops I mentioned and the others that are planned. Fáilte Ireland is a named partner in the Dublin Bay UNESCO Biosphere, the purpose of which is to ensure that tourism growth is aligned with sustainability and environmental stewardship. Fáilte Ireland continues to invest in seasonal events, such as the New Year's Festival, which is held in Howth, and the Home of Hallowe'en hub in Fingal, which drive off-season tourism and provide direct support to local businesses. Those are the key areas we are trying to work on in order to lengthen the season. Fáilte Ireland offers tailored brand toolkits, marketing resources and business-to-business promotional content designed to empower local tour operators and small enterprises to create and showcase memorable visitor experiences that drive regional tourism growth. These initiatives represent a comprehensive programme to grow marine and coastal tourism in Dublin Bay North. This is along with other potential funding streams I mentioned that are overseen by the Department of Housing, Heritage and Local Government.

It is great that the Minister thinks this is a good idea. Think of what would be in place in another country if Bram Stoker had lived there. He lived in the Fairview area. You can still see his house. I know the person who lives in it. They voted for me. Actually, I do not know if they did.

They gave you their number two.

Yes. It is great to see Deputy Ó Muirí’s enthusiasm, but, sadly, you cannot ask a supplementary on a priority question. A heritage centre would act as a home for Bram Stoker's story . It would be a base for tourism and a shared space for the community. It would drive footfall in the area. When I work as a barman, I spoke to Americans who came to the area. When I told them about Bram Stoker and the Battle of Clontarf, they did not know about either because not enough is done to publicise them. If any other country was the birthplace of the person who wrote Dracula and brought it to the world stage, that would be a centre point and it would be used to bring people in. We had the Bram Stoker museum. Sadly, it closed. Those involved with the heritage centre have the memorabilia ready; they just need a site.

I am happy to work with Deputies Heneghan and Ó Muirí in their constituency, particularly as this is a very important project. We will be working on a number of projects in the context of our destination and experience development plan, which will chart the development of the area, over the coming months and years. It is important that this work links with that of our State agencies and local authorities. There are exciting opportunities in the tourism sector, and I relish the opportunity of working on them in the coming months. We have significant capital schemes that we will bring forward this year. We will also focus developing the brand. SMEs are critical - I keep coming back to this - because they deliver the authentic brand on our behalf. In that context, we have to up our digital game. There will be a lot of grants available to help businesses make sure that the information provided on their platforms is what is needed to ensure that what we have to offer is highlighted on the search engines people use to book tours, etc. About 30% of all people who come here use the Internet to assess the areas they are thinking about visiting. They use generative AI to set out their itineraries for the time they are here. We need to ensure that businesses here can advertise what they have to offer in an effective way online.