There is concern among the tourism industry in Dublin at the reputational damage to the capital following the violence and unrest last Thursday.
The chief executive of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation said quite a few tourists were caught up in the melee, and a number of hotels were also in the midst of it. Eoghan O'Mara Walsh praised "heroic hoteliers" who provided refuge for tourists, guests and members of the public.
The chaotic scenes made news internationally and Mr O'Mara Walsh said there had been short-term reputational damage, "which is a shame because Dublin and Ireland has traded for so long on being a safe, secure and welcoming place"
"We need to see more gardaí on the streets; a higher profile police presence. We need to ensure that this never happens again. I think if we do, this short term reputational damage will pass and I can think we'll regain our position as a safe place to come."
There's around 250,000 people working in the tourism and hospitality industry, the country's largest indigenous industry and a significant number of staff are immigrants.
The hospitality sector has been talking about a shortage of staff since the pandemic, but will people want to come to Ireland where anti-immigrant sentiment was evident in Dublin last week.
"What we have to make sure is that tourism is an attractive industry to join but we also have to make sure that the city and the country where tourism takes place is also safe and secure," Mr O'Mara Walsh. "We're not worried at the moment, retention of staff has improved. Recruitment of staff is always an ongoing challenge. The image of Ireland as a safe place to be, is critically important.
"If we see a reoccurrence of this, we as a country have a problem let alone the tourism industry."
