Tourist numbers up by 4.2% in second quarter

75,000 more tourists visited Ireland between April and June this year, compared to the same period last year.

According to the latest CSO figures, nearly 2 million visitors came here during that three month period.

The numbers coming from North America increased by 14.8%, while visitor numbers from EU countries, excluding Great Britain, rose by 4.9%.

There had been some speculation that the tourism figures may include Irish people who had recently emigrated in search of work, but Junior Minister for Tourism Michael Ring has disputed these claims.

"We're quite positive that these are all tourism figures. There's no doubt about it - you can see it at every corner of the country," he said.

The Minister also claimed there was "no doubt" that The Gathering tourism initiative has worked.

"The good news is really the American market, the European market … you can see the Americans on the ground."

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