Kenny vows end to €10 travel tax as jobs take priority

ABOLITION of the €10 travel tax was pledged by Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny last night as he moved to put jobs creation at the centre of the political stage.

Opening his party’s national conference in Killarney, Mr Kenny insisted the controversial air surcharge was symbolic of the Government’s “destructive” policies.

Mr Kenny said the tax had helped kill 3,000 jobs, cost the tourism industry €480m, but only netted €100m for the Exchequer.

Borrowing the campaign slogan of the British Tory party, Mr Kenny peppered his opening address to the conference with the phrase “we cannot go on like this”.

Job creation is the key theme of the two-day event as Fine Gael uses the TV exposure granted to it to present its economic policies as credible alternatives.

Internal party rifts over constitutional reform were set to spill out into the open today as Fine Gael debated its “new politics” agenda, but no vote will be held on the proposed changes. Moves by the leadership to impose women-only candidate lists and abolish the Seanad have already met stiff resistance from backbench TD and the movement’s youth wing.

Mr Kenny kicked-off the conference with a populist promise to force a Dáil vote on abolishing the €10 air travel tax next week.

“The €10 travel tax on tourists that has done such damage to this vital job-intensive industry. Ireland is an island nation and cost-competitive airline access to this country is vital for every major industry, and particularly tourism.

“Nothing better sums up this Government’s short-sighted, self-defeating approach to fixing the economy than Brian Lenihan’s imposition of the travel tax in 2008, just as the economy was already heading into recession.

“A tax hike that has netted only €100m for the Government has, according to industry analysis, resulted in lost tourism revenues to the entire country of €480m and directly destroyed 3,000 jobs.”

Health and law and order also form major parts of the conference agenda.