Hoteliers criticise government's 'meaningless' Covid-19 intervention

The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) has criticised the Government’s measures to help the hotel industry during the Covid-19 epidemic, saying they don’t go far enough.

The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) has criticised the Government’s measures to help the hotel industry during the Covid-19 epidemic, saying they do not go far enough.

The IHF wants local authority rates payments for hotels to be waived until the crisis is over. Elaina Fitzgerald Kane, IHF president, said proposals to defer rates payments were “wholly inadequate.”

“Let’s be very clear: our quest is to get 260,000 people back to work and if this meaningless intervention is to be the only initiative brought to the table, businesses throughout Ireland will suffer,” she said.

“Hundreds of tourism and hospitality businesses across the country have closed their doors in recent days, due to this crisis, with no idea as to when they will be able to reopen. Accruing their liabilities makes no sense. Their financial difficulties are not going to simply evaporate at the end of May.”