Jim Power: Vat hike was wrong as Irish tourism faces tougher times

I believed at the time that the decision in Budget 2019 to increase the Vat rate for the hospitality industry from 9% to 13.5% was a mistake in terms of its timing, its magnitude and the rationale that was used.

The timing was particularly damaging, given that we were heading into a year of more difficult global economic circumstances, and of course Brexit was starting to ramp up as a big issue for both the Irish and UK economies.