Irish tourism is formed by public and private organisations. According to the aim of this paper, a more in-depth description will be made of the public sector organisations since these have direct responsibility for tourism and some of them are in charge of the tourism policy or they are directly involved in it.
The following graph’s aim is to help to comprehend further the structure of each sector in the Irish tourism industry.
Figure. 3.1. Structure of the tourism in Ireland
Source: made by the author
3.2.1 PUBLIC SECTOR: National level
3.2.1.1. Government
Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism
The department’s main function is to formulate national tourism policy and integrate it REGIONAL LEVEL:Dublin County LOCAL LEVEL: Dublin city
- Office Public Works
- Airport Authority - Regional Tourism Authorities - Dublin Tourism - Dublin Convention Bureau PUBLIC SECTOR
- Dublin City Council
- Dublin Development Board
PRIVATE SECTOR
- Irish Tourist Industry Confederation - Other private associations - Convention Bureau Ireland - Government Departments - Fáilte Ireland - Tourism Ireland Ltd. NATIONAL LEVEL
North-South cooperation between Ireland and Northern Ireland. The department controls the adequacy of the actions taken in the industry to the National Development Plan.
Within the department there is a tourism policy unit known as Tourism Policy Review
Group that is part of the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism has responsibility on
the following matters on policy formulation:
• Human resources, training and education.
• Tourism product development, for example International Sports Tourism Initiatives and festivals such as the annually St. Patrick’s Festival
• Standards and quality of the tourism product. For example it is the responsible for creating legislation of the minimum requisites needed by a tourist accommodation establishment.
• Control that the Regional Tourism Organisations follow the same guidelines established at a national level.
It is necessary to highlight that the Department does not have direct responsibility for making decisions on the funding of tourism projects.
Department of Finance: it controls the finances of the Irish economy at all levels. So, all money invested by the Department of Tourism is determined by this department.
Other departments related with tourism are: Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources: has responsibility for marine policy and the development of the ports.
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food: is involved in tourism through agro- tourism schemes.
Department of Transport
Department of the Environment, the Heritage and Local Government
3.2.1.2. Fáilte Ireland
Fáilte Ireland (FI) is also known as the National Tourism Development Authority (NTDA) and is mainly funded by the government. The members of the National Tourism Development Authority are selected by the Minister of Arts, Sports and Tourism and all of the components come from different backgrounds which include from businesspeople to university lecturers.
Fáilte Ireland is responsible for tourism development in the twenty-six counties of the Republic of Ireland at a national, local and regional level. It is allied with various organisations (public and private) involved in the Irish tourism industry
The main functions of Fáilte Ireland are as follows:
• Marketing
• Training for businesses and professionals.
• Tourism products development through grants and tax incentive plans.
• Research and Statistic.
3.2.1.3 Tourism Ireland Limited
This organisation was originated as part of the Good Friday Agreement, the treaty between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It was decided that the whole island would be promoted overseas as a single destination in order to attract more foreign tourists and in 2002 Tourism Ireland Limited was established with this function
3.2.1.4. The Convention Bureau of Ireland
The Convention Bureau of Ireland (CBI) is a corporate promotion name used by the Conference, Incentive and Group Travel Department of Fáilte Ireland.
3.2.1.5. The Office of Public Works (OPW)
This organisation is run by a minister of state from the Department of Finance and it is responsible, in conjunction with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, for the preservation and refurbishment of:
• National monuments and historical properties
• Parks and gardens
• Ireland’s National Parks and Wildlife Service
It is also in charge of managing the state art collection which includes 6,000 works of art and it promotes the country’s art.
3.2.1.6. Airport Authorities
Basically these organisations manage the airports as well as the development of Irish aviation. It also includes the administration of the duty free establishments within the airport facilities.
3.2.2. PUBLIC SECTOR: Regional level
3.2.2.1. Regional Tourism Authorities
There are seven tourism regions in the Republic of Ireland, which are structured according to the EU planning areas. Six of the seven regions are managed by Regional Tourism Authorities but the Shannon region is managed by an organisation called
Shannon Development which has overall responsibility for the industrial development including tourism.
The Regional Tourism Authorities main functions are the management, the promotion and development of the tourism sector in each of their respective regions. It is fundamental to point out that these authorities run the tourist information offices located in their area and that are responsible for tourism policy in their region as well.
The RTAs are funded by Fáilte Ireland, member’s fees and commercial activities, such as visitor services.
3.2.3. PUBLIC SECTOR: Local level
3.2.3.1 Dublin Tourism
Dublin Tourism is the state agency responsible for the development and promotion of the tourism in the Dublin region. This authority was created because of the need to promote Dublin as a single destination due to its high potential to attract visitors.
The main collaborators of Dublin Tourism include Fáilte Ireland, the Dublin Council and the main tourism organisations and companies such as hotels, restaurants and museums.
It also operates four tourist information offices and reservation centres and five visitor attractions in the region of Dublin County.
3.2.3.2. Dublin Convention Bureau
This organisation main function is to promote Dublin as an optimum destination for Business travel. It provides advice on organisations and companies that want to hold conferences and conventions in the city.
3.2.3.3. Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council is the local authority for the city of Dublin. It is responsible for the maintenance of various aspects of the city such as the roads, housing, water and waste management but it does not have a tourism department, although there is a chapter for Arts, Sport and Tourism in the Dublin City Development Plan that sets policy objectives for tourism in the city.
3.2.3.4. Dublin City Development Board
The Dublin’s Development Board is basically an association of state agencies, private organisations and the Dublin City Council. It has no direct responsibility for tourism but
it promotes the culture, the art and the safety among other issues in the city and these elements are considered very important for the tourism.
3.2.4. PRIVATE SECTOR:
3.2.4.1. The Irish Tourist Industry Confederation (ITIC)
The Irish Tourist Confederation represents all major commercial tourism interests and it can be considered as a negotiation group. It encourages the development of legislation appropriate for the private sector and it deals with the Irish government in issues such as tourism policy, funding and investment
3.2.4.2. Private associations
There are several small and large private organisations which work independently of the government and that sometimes cooperate with state agencies such as Fáilte Ireland. Some of them are:
• Irish Hotel Federation (IHF):
• Town and Country Homes Association (B&B)
• Irish Farmhouse Holidays
• Houses, Castles and Gardens of Ireland
• Restaurant Association of Ireland (RAI)
• The National Trust for Ireland: It is an independent and voluntary organisation that helps in the conservation of national heritage.