Plough event will give €20m boost to local economy

THE three-day National Ploughing Championships, which Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will open at Grangeford, Tullow, Co Carlow, tomorrow, will be worth approximately €20 million to the region’s economy.

A huge demand for hotel, guesthouse, bed and breakfast and other accommodation has been reported within a 30-mile radius of the venue, where a serviced tented town has been developed for the rural pageant.

Coping with 200,000 visitors to the event and the American Express golf championships, at nearby Mount Juliet, have created a major logistics challenge.