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The money will be payable by whichever country wins the right to host the yacht race to the organisers, America's Cup Events Ltd (ACE), on the day the successful bid is announced.

Cork North-Central TD Mick Barry said the Government needs to clarify what the event will cost the Irish State, and how the funds will be paid. He called on Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney, who has spearheaded Ireland's campaign to secure the event at government level, to spell out exactly what are the costs involved. 

"He seems keen to spend a lot of taxpayers' money on this elite sporting event that was a loss-maker for Auckland," Mr Barry said.

Cork is tipped to be the main host venue for the 2024 America's Cup, held this year in Auckland, New Zealand, and is running neck-and-neck with the Spanish city of Valencia, which has hosted the contest before, and already has dedicated infrastructure in place.

Simon Coveney, who has spearheaded the Cork bid, told reporters recently he is hopeful the announcement of the successful host on September 17 will be good news for Ireland.

There are two tranches of funding required by the America's Cup — the infrastructure costs to prepare for the event, and the organisers' fee.

 

 

The Government confirmed last week that it would be embarking on a phased easing of Covid-19 restrictions, which will eventually see the removal of the vast majority of public health regulations by the end of October.

The numbers permitted to attend outdoor sports events increases from today, while restrictions on indoor venues will be eased, with larger crowds permitted.

Indoor venues will be able to use up to 60% of capacity when holding events for people who are fully vaccinated..

For outdoor events, 75% of capacity will be available for vaccinated individuals.

All religious ceremonies will be allowed to proceed with 50% of venue capacity regardless of the immunity status of those in attendance.

Live music at weddings is also set to return from to-day, with the number of attendees fixed at 100.

 

 

 

 

The impact of Covid 19 on Irish tourim has been 'nothing short of cataclysmic' says Ruth Andrews, chair of the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation..

Writing in 'The Irish Times', she says that the pandemic put an all but complete halt to air and sea travel and the unfettered movement of people. 'It has recommenced somewhat since mid-July with the European Digital Covid Certificate but most of the traffic at airports has been Irish people travelling outbound in search of the sun. Inbound tourism numbers have been modest and are likely to remain so into next year due to a lack of connectivity with key source markets overseas'.

The Irish Tourism Industry Confederation  has quantified the cost of the pandemic to tourism and hospitality businesses since 2019 at a staggering €13.8 billion.

As a result, it is much cheaper to buy Irish whiskey in an Italian off-licence, where just €2.90 is added in excise taxes, – that’s a quarter of the €11.92 levied by the Irish Government.

Ireland has the highest rate of tax on wine in the EU, the second-highest on beer and the third-highest on spirits.

Most other drinks-producing countries, including France and Germany, have low taxes on their major products, with 15 EU countries, including wine producers Italy and Spain, charging no excise duties on wine.

The Drinks Industry Group of Ireland has suggested a 7.5pc reduction in excise tax on beer, wine, spirits, and cider in the coming budget, which they estimate could have an immediate impact on thousands of hospitality businesses, hundreds of thousands of workers, and domestic and overseas consumers, including tourists.