Now they all want a guarantee - Hotel Sector in Crisis

[Gruffalo]

Following the announcement that Bank of Scotland (Ireland) is to disappear, we are told that devastation is about to be wreaked upon the Hotel sector. 150 hotels are now under threat as the bank provides 20% of all loans to the sector.

So now we have the Irish Hotels Federation calling for a Government guarantee scheme for the sector:


The Irish Hotels Federation has said that 150 hotels are under threat following the decision by Bank of Scotland Ireland to close.

The bank provides 20% of all loans to the hotel sector and will withdraw from the business market by the end of the year.

Irish Hotels Federation President Paul Gallagher has called for a Government 'guarantee' scheme for the sector.

Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mr Gallagher said hotels will be unable to find credit elsewhere.

In a statement yesterday, Mr Gallagher said the IHF was concerned that many hotels will face cash flow issues during the winter months.

Mr Paul Gallagher said: 'In addition to long-term loans, the existing package of facilities provided by Bank of Scotland (Ireland) to our members includes vital seasonal funding to carry them through the quieter winter period.http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0820/hotels.html

I don't agree with a Government guarantee scheme but something needs to be done in this sector. Normally, during a recession, we could count on the market getting rid of the poor hotels but thanks to NAMA that is not happening.


Meanwhile, hotel owners are warning that competitors who have been taken over by the National Asset Management Agency are damaging the industry.

Managing Director of the Park Hotel in Kenmare, Co Kerry, John Brennan said that there are 62,000 too many hotel rooms in Ireland.
Therefore, we are likely to see properly run hotels suffering for their professionalism. What can be done to sort this mess out?

[Cassandra Syndrome]

Its gone beyond the asylum level at this stage.

I backed Liverpool at 14s for the Premiership. Can the government guarantee that if they don't win?

[Slim Buddha]

There are too many pointless hotels. Another boneheaded FF policy reaches its predictably stupid conclusion. Stupidity of this nature really deserves some sort of punishment. So let the market decide!

[Cassandra Syndrome]

There are too many pointless hotels. Another boneheaded FF policy reaches its predictably stupid conclusion. Stupidity of this nature really deserves some sort of punishment. So let the market decide!

+1

Its not fair on the hotels that have been standing on their own 2 feet for ages now, a lot of them local family run businesses, having now to compete with blow in speculative newbies with subsidised room rates from banks. Its not a level playing field.

[Xray]

Good, face reality. Failed banks, failed hotels, failed anything, are failed. If you are losing money you are not a business. Not because I or the government say so, because that is reality. If your business plan to make money this winter is to borrow money from BOSI then you don't have a business plan. Try that one in the Dragons Den.

Its harsh, its jobs loses, its tough, but its the truth. The solution to being in too much debt is not to borrow more money. It is like asking for a larger shovel to dig your way out of a hole.

FFS can we just have capitalism for once?

[Xray]

+1

Its not fair on the hotels that have been standing on their own 2 feet for ages now, a lot of them local family run businesses, having now to compete with blow in speculative newbies with subsidised room rates from banks. Its not a level playing field.

If normal policy applied the indebted hotels would be closed down and sold to someone with no debts, they would then run a perfectly profitable hotel. The hotels are fine, its the owners. If you buy a hotel for a song now you have a viable business plan. That is the answer. Bankruptcy. BOSI are doing Ireland a favour by ending this limboland lets pretend we are all not bankrupt carry on.

[TotalMayhem]

Well, we're getting our own Socialist Workers Paradise at long last, everything will be guaranteed.

[ang]

The IT is also running with the Hotel story I found this comment very interesting:-


Asked about the withdrawal of the bank from the Irish market, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan said that there had been too much lending in the Irish economy, and the cost for any foreign bank pulling out would be met by the shareholders of that bank.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2010/0820/1224277228098.html

Now Mr Lenihan why did the same not apply to our own banks, Anglo,AIB,BOI et al.........what's so special about them???

[DCon]

+1

Its not fair on the hotels that have been standing on their own 2 feet for ages now, a lot of them local family run businesses, having now to compete with blow in speculative newbies with subsidised room rates from banks. Its not a level playing field.

Our banana republic will ensure the newbies survive while the long established hotels go to the wall

[TotalMayhem]

Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan said ... the cost for any foreign bank pulling out would be met by the shareholders of that bank.

Does that mean the cost for any foreign bank not pulling out will be met by the Irish taxpayers?

[Graham]

Our banana republic will ensure the newbies survive while the long established hotels go to the wall

Tragic as it is that seems to be the way of it.

If the investment vehicle hotels go under their backers have to pay back the tax breaks they got for building the stupid, pointless things in the first place so they're being subsidised to the point where they're driving the viable hotels out of business.

End result? No viable hotels left and a whole bunch of empty hotels no one wants to go to that will shut down as soon as the time limit on the tax thing runs out.

And so the madness continues . . .

[DCon]

Article on this in today's Indo


"Even during the recession of the 1980s there was a manageable level of competition, but then during the boom you got all this government interference in the market to create tax breaks for hotels that never looked sustainable," he said.


"If you have one hotel with €50m in debts, and another beside it that owes €4m, the bank and eventually NAMA is going to keep the one that owes €50m open, because they see that as the only way to get something back.

"The hotel that owes just €4m will probably be forced to sell, because the bank knows it'll get most of that back on the property, and that enhances the value of the heavily indebted hotel because it's one less competitor," he said.

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/worse-to-come-when-nama-steps-in-2306458.html

[TotalMayhem]

In other words: if you owe €4m, it's your problem, if you owe €50m, it's their problem.

[Gruffalo]

In other words: if you owe €4m, it's your problem, if you owe €50m, it's OUR problem.

I had to change that for you:p

[Xray]

There will be no jobs loses if the hotels are viable, if they are viable someone will take them over and run them at a profit. If they are un-viable then nobody could make money out of them regardless of how much money was lent to them.

Now we either have too many hotel beds or we do not. If we have too many there is only two solutions I can think of, more tourists or less hotels. Borrowing money is not required.

Maybe the 7 billion the government is being asked for would be better spend in removing taxes from foreign visitors to the country. Lets save as many ordinary jobs as we can, who owns the hotels is not relevant.

[C. Flower]

There will be no jobs loses if the hotels are viable, if they are viable someone will take them over and run them at a profit. If they are un-viable then nobody could make money out of them regardless of how much money was lent to them.

Now we either have too many hotel beds or we do not. If we have too many there is only two solutions I can think of, more tourists or less hotels. Borrowing money is not required.

Maybe the 7 billion the government is being asked for would be better spend in removing taxes from foreign visitors to the country. Lets save as many ordinary jobs as we can, who owns the hotels is not relevant.

Unfortunately, hotels aren't like tins of beans. They're location specific and each one is unique. We may well end up with the good hotels which could have formed the basis for a good tourism industry bankrupted by subsidised inferior or poorly located ones that will go belly up as soon as the subsidies are gone.

Whoever thought it was a good idea to put a 5 star LA type hotel on top of an isolated boggy mountain in Carlow ? It was only built as a tax write off in the first place. Nobody would have built it with real money. The money was legally stolen from the tax payers. If we bail it out now, we will have paid for it twice.

[Graham]

There will be no jobs loses if the hotels are viable, if they are viable someone will take them over and run them at a profit. If they are un-viable then nobody could make money out of them regardless of how much money was lent to them.

Now we either have too many hotel beds or we do not. If we have too many there is only two solutions I can think of, more tourists or less hotels. Borrowing money is not required.

Maybe the 7 billion the government is being asked for would be better spend in removing taxes from foreign visitors to the country. Lets save as many ordinary jobs as we can, who owns the hotels is not relevant.


The problem is that the hotels that would otherwise be viable are not viable because they can't compete with the non-viable hotels that are being propped up for tax/finance reasons.

No-one will buy the otherwise-viable hotels because they can't compete with the non-viable hotels so they will go out of business and jobs will be lost.

No-one will buy the non-viable hotels either so once the tax/finance issues are sorted out they'll close down too and more jobs will be lost.

Maybe eventually once that's all sorted out more hotels will open up but who knows?

[TotalMayhem]

Originally Posted by TotalMayhem
In other words: if you owe €4m, it's your problem, if you owe €50m, it's OUR problem.


I had to change that for you:p

Maybe not ...

Mojo Nixon once said: "Some times, in the course of human events it becomes necessary to disassociate yourself with he ties that bind, gonna break them ties, gonna bust em up."

YouTube- Mojo Nixon ~ You Can't Kill Me

[Xray]

The problem is that the hotels that would otherwise be viable are not viable because they can't compete with the non-viable hotels that are being propped up for tax/finance reasons.

No-one will buy the otherwise-viable hotels because they can't compete with the non-viable hotels so they will go out of business and jobs will be lost.

No-one will buy the non-viable hotels either so once the tax/finance issues are sorted out they'll close down too and more jobs will be lost.

Maybe eventually once that's all sorted out more hotels will open up but who knows?

Exactly, so remove all state interference in the market tax breaks as well as taxes on the tourists and just let it find its own level. Hotels are for people to stay in, houses are for people to live in and banks are for keeping money safe.

When we get back to those simple truths we will all better off. Hotels are not tax breaks or debt servicing devices. They are big buildings that feed and water you before you go to bed. If they do that cheaply and well they will have a business if they do not they wont. We all know about the silly way some good businesses are being undermined, but the idea that state needs to sort that out is a joke. This is not the USSR, we are not that wealthy.:D

[TotalMayhem]

This is not the USSR, we are not that wealthy.:D

What??? No Workers Paradise for us???

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/6589/20100821165410clipboard.jpg

[disability student]

Interesting piece on the wealthy elities and the tax breaks on hotels:

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/kenny-putting-on-ritz-for-tax-relief-2245544.html

Read more: http://www.irishexaminer.com/business/kfcwojsnojmh/rss2/#ixzz0xFzocnFX

So the government were giving vastly excessive tax breaks for hotel rooms at a time when the public wanted houses. There was no public outcry about the hotel room shortage.This one was all them.

http://www.insideireland.ie/index.cfm/section/news/ext/tasc002/ -This article shows the negative side of the hotel tax breaks which dearly costs our economy.


Eamonn McKeon adds: "The tax incentives caused the excess of beds. Banks and other non-hoteliers found they could build a hotel for, say, €70m and claim that back at €10m a year over seven years against taxes they could have been paying on their other businesses.

"But what happens if you claim back €30m in one year and the hotel then closes? Do you now have to finally pay those taxes? Some hotels wanted to avoid paying that tax, but the Government said no. And that is why the banks haven’t closed the hotels. They don’t want to pay the taxes before the seven years are up.

Tax breaks on hotels run out at the end of 2008. They were based on a 100 per cent capital write-off over seven years - that has now reverted to a period of 25 years.

Curiously as regards to write off amended from seven years to 25 years, I wonder who amended that legalisation to benefit the developers.

[Xray]

What??? No Workers Paradise for us???

http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/6589/20100821165410clipboard.jpg

Come to Ireland where you can have the worst of Capitalism, Democracy, State Socialism & Nepotistic Corruption all in one place. And a cheap hotel room until Jan. :rolleyes:


I think loads of hotel rooms is a strength, we should keep them open and fill the country with tourists. If only we had a native low cost airline and a tourist board....

[5intheface]

If only we had a native low cost airline and a tourist board....

:D :) :eek:

[C. Flower]

Interesting piece on the wealthy elities and the tax breaks on hotels:

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/kenny-putting-on-ritz-for-tax-relief-2245544.html

Read more: http://www.irishexaminer.com/business/kfcwojsnojmh/rss2/#ixzz0xFzocnFX

So the government were giving vastly excessive tax breaks for hotel rooms at a time when the public wanted houses. There was no public outcry about the hotel room shortage.This one was all them.

http://www.insideireland.ie/index.cfm/section/news/ext/tasc002/ -This article shows the negative side of the hotel tax breaks which dearly costs our economy.


Eamonn McKeon adds: "The tax incentives caused the excess of beds. Banks and other non-hoteliers found they could build a hotel for, say, €70m and claim that back at €10m a year over seven years against taxes they could have been paying on their other businesses.

"But what happens if you claim back €30m in one year and the hotel then closes? Do you now have to finally pay those taxes? Some hotels wanted to avoid paying that tax, but the Government said no. And that is why the banks haven’t closed the hotels. They don’t want to pay the taxes before the seven years are up.

Tax breaks on hotels run out at the end of 2008. They were based on a 100 per cent capital write-off over seven years - that has now reverted to a period of 25 years.

Curiously as regards to write off amended from seven years to 25 years, I wonder who amended that legalisation to benefit the developers.


I would too, DS. I would like to know who, when and how much that's going to cost us.

Not all of these people were bankrupt.

[DCon]

I think loads of hotel rooms is a strength, we should keep them open and fill the country with tourists. If only we had a native low cost airline and a tourist board....

As FF will not reduce/eliminate the ridiculous tax on tourist travel, why not say if you are visiting Ireland and stay in a hotel, the airport tax you paid will come off the hotel bill.

[TotalMayhem]

we should keep them open and fill the country with tourists.

Now that they're building an international airport in Offaly to accommodate 9 million passengers per year, there is hope.

Great strategic thinking: We have a surplus of 60,000 hotel beds? Not to worry, we'll build a giant airport in the middle of f*cking nowhere and the problem will go away.

[disability student]

Now that they're building an international airport in Offaly to accommodate 9 million passengers per year, there is hope.

Great strategic thinking: We have a surplus of 60,000 hotel beds? Not to worry, we'll build a giant airport in the middle of f*cking nowhere and the problem will go away.

Most of the hotels are in the higher end of scale as there is a scarce of 3 * hotels around in this country aimed for the budget travellers/tourists etc.

An oversupply of hotels plus in addition to that, many (far too many) 4 * star hotels whose prices were lot dearer than in any European country which was a huge turn off for any prospective tourists.

[Xray]

Now that they're building an international airport in Offaly to accommodate 9 million passengers per year, there is hope.

Great strategic thinking: We have a surplus of 60,000 hotel beds? Not to worry, we'll build a giant airport in the middle of f*cking nowhere and the problem will go away.

Well you play the deck you have. We have a lot of hotel rooms. I say get them bankrupted and back out in the game as low cost high volume players and fast. We could flood the country with tourists. I would fly them here for free it were up to me. So one landing in an Irish airport is an asset from the moment the get in a taxi. These hotels should not be used to prop up banks and developers that are in trouble they should be used to save jobs of people on the lower end of things. This is possible. If they are allowed to go empty and rot over a year or two its too late. Keep them open and staffed and fill them. That is a plan. Ryanair and Aer Lingus would gladly flying people in if the government worked with them to fill planes. If a tourist brings a net benefit of only 50 euro they should be brought in.

Price controls could be used via the tourist agencies. Limit the price of staples like pints, food and room rates. Have a harp sign of something for recovery hotels. They you know you will get values. Give all tax on pints back at the airport. Go mad, fill them. It would be viral advertising.

Broke Irish give out free flights and pints to the first million!

Just do it.

[TotalMayhem]

An oversupply of hotels plus in addition to that, many (far too many) 4 * star hotels whose prices were lot dearer than in any European country which was a huge turn off for any prospective tourists.

Which leads to the conclusion, the bloody things haven't been built to accommodate tourists but to avoid taxes in the first place. The more expensive the higher the tax cuts.

[TotalMayhem]

Broke Irish give out free flights and pints to the first million!

I'm pretty sure that would be a violation of more EU regulations than we can think of.

[Xray]

I am going to start a thread on bringing lots of tourists, dont want to ruin a good thread here with it.

[disability student]

Which leads to the conclusion, the bloody things haven't been built to accommodate tourists but to avoid taxes in the first place. The more expensive the higher the tax cuts.

That clearly points out to the total lack of planning on their part (developers, Govt, Tourist board of Ireland) as regards to various types of tourists ranging from the wealthy to the tight fisted tourist/travellers.

Also the banks/developers/barristers/Pat kenny didn't want to close down the hotels otherwise they would be forced to pay tax back before seven years is up. That is the real issue here.

Let all the bankrupt hotels or tax breaks hotels close down as it would generate monies to the taxpayer in the form of tax clawback before the timeframe.

[C. Flower]

Exactly. It didn't matter what they spent. There's a hotel in Naas, very poorly laid out, but with the most expensive Spa equipment this side of Hollywood.

It has an ice-chamber ffs.

[disability student]

How about setting up a new thread naming all hotels availing of the various tax breaks or are in deep financial trouble??

[Xray]

Legal issues there, I would not go there.

[disability student]

See here re costs of tax breaks and the date of termination of each tax breaks.

Link:http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2010-02-18.1064.0

The highest tax relief claimed was the hotel tax breaks. That is getting more interesting now.

[DCon]

See here re costs of tax breaks and the date of termination of each tax breaks.

Link:http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2010-02-18.1064.0

The highest tax relief claimed was the hotel tax breaks. That is getting more interesting now.

what does this mean?


Hotels continue to qualify for capital allowances but over 25 years instead of over 7 years.

[Xray]

Well you can only claim against tax if making a profit, so maybe the are waiting for fatter years ahead to bill us again for these hotels and hospitals.

[disability student]

what does this mean?

This means that many developers or wealthy people for instance the barrristers or the medical consultants if you like can offset their capital allowances against their tax bill. Thus effectively it will reduce their tax bill by a lot.

For instance a RTE presenter or wealthy professional set up a company to avail of this tax advantage in order to use their capital allowances against their incomes whatever it may be.

You cannot offset against a loss only a profit.

[DCon]

This means that many developers or wealthy people for instance the barrristers or the medical consultants if you like can offset their capital allowances against their tax bill. Thus effectively it will reduce their tax bill by a lot.

For instance a RTE presenter or wealthy professional set up a company to avail of this tax advantage in order to use their capital allowances against their incomes whatever it may be.

You cannot offset against a loss only a profit.

I got that, but was it extended for 25 years??

[disability student]

I got that, but was it extended for 25 years??

Yes you could see that it being extended to 25 years from my previous post with a link to Kildare street.

Why 25 years?? Who made that economic treason decision to extend by an additional 18 years at least. Lenihan or Cowen??

[disability student]

A brief summary of hotel capital allowances:

With respect to hotels, capital allowances continue to be available over a seven-year period for capital expenditure incurred on the construction of hotel buildings before 31 July 2006 where certain conditions are met. In certain commercial arrangements, investors may have no legal obligation to pay a property developer for the cost of building a hotel until all construction works are complete. If this date is post 31 July 2006, can investors claim capital allowances over a seven-year period? The authors understand that Revenue have confirmed that capital expenditure incurred on the construction of a building or structure in use for the purposes of a trade of hotel-keeping will be treated as being incurred prior to 31 July 2006 to the extent that such expenditure is attributable to work on the construction of the building carried out before 31 July 2006 even if this work has not been invoiced to or paid for by the investors. Therefore, investors may claim capital allowances over a seven-year period for works completed by 31 July 2006, even if payment is paid post 31 July 2006. Works completed after the deadline will qualify for capital allowances over 25 years.

[Fing Fers]

I'm short on cash, cant even afford a night out. I guess I should go to my local, drinks on tick have the cost gauranteed by Government, may as well.

[Gruffalo]

I'm short on cash, cant even afford a night out. I guess I should go to my local, drinks on tick have the cost gauranteed by Government, may as well.

Now you are just being silly. If you want to be covered by the Government you will need to clock up a much bigger bill than one person can manage. Send the invites around, we will have a forum party.:p

[ang]

NAMA (or should I say we) now own loans secured on 48 hotels acquired.

35 are in Ireland and as they state 13 Ex Ireland.

http://www.nama.ie/Publications/2010/NAMAKeyTranche12Data23Aug2010.pdf

[TotalMayhem]

If we own these hotels then we are mediately responsible for the destruction of viable, healthy businesses and thus the destruction of people's livelihoods in the interest of greedy investors. Quite a good reason not only to emigrate but also to renounce citizenship ... or not to pay taxes. ;)

[DCon]

Article on this in today's Indo


THE National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) is now kingmaker for 35 Irish hotels after a dramatic surge in the level of hotel-linked debt parked with the bad bank.

Figures on the second batch of NAMA transfers also show a surge in non-Irish debt.

Just 50pc of the loans sent over in the second batch were linked to Irish projects, compared with a 66pc contingent in Tranche 1.

Loans for projects in the UK and the Channel Islands accounted for 44pc of the second tranche transfers, significantly up on their 30pc share of the first batch.

A quarter of the entire €11.9bn sent across was secured on 31 hotels, including 22 in Ireland. The picture is in stark contrast to the first tranche of transfers, when just 4pc of the €27.2bn transferred over was secured on hotels.

That is 383 million per hotel on average. How is this possible? How profitable are bloody hotels???


NAMA will have the power to interrogate aspects of the plans, and can also suggest borrowers sell their hotels to pay debts.

Since the hotels are being used as security for loans, NAMA is also empowered to seize the hotels in the event of developers defaulting on their debts.

In its business plan, NAMA hints that it may close hotels where a "number of NAMA-funded hotels are competing in a location where there is only potential for a single facility".

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/nama-now-kingmaker-for-some-35-struggling-hotels-2308911.html

[C. Flower]

Article on this in today's Indo

That is 383 million per hotel on average. How is this possible? How profitable are bloody hotels???

http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/nama-now-kingmaker-for-some-35-struggling-hotels-2308911.html

It looks extremely dubious. But one of the problems is that because these hotels were a tax write off, it appeared to the developers that the more they spent on them, the more tax they could avoid.

I read recently that the period for clawing back this tax in the event of closure has been extended from 7-25 years.....

Edit: Even considering that - the sums are insane. There must be some explanation.

[DCon]

It looks extremely dubious. But one of the problems is that because these hotels were a tax write off, it appeared to the developers that the more they spent on them, the more tax they could avoid.

I read recently that the period for clawing back this tax in the event of closure has been extended from 7-25 years.....

Edit: Even considering that - the sums are insane. There must be some explanation.

Was there any scope, during the madness, for Developers to borrow a few hundred million more than the project cost?

Squirrel the extra millions away to a Swiss account and now leave the taxpayer to pay back the bank..

[C. Flower]

Was there any scope, during the madness, for Developers to borrow a few hundred million more than the project cost?

Squirrel the extra millions away to a Swiss account and now leave the taxpayer to pay back the bank..

It certainly should be investigated. I can't believe those figures. Land is included I suppose.

It should be easy enough to check the area of these places off the plans and see how much had been spent per sq metre...

[Gruffalo]

If there is property in the UK included, why cant we just seize it and sell it? There property prices have not plummeted like ours.

[DCon]

If there is property in the UK included, why cant we just seize it and sell it? There property prices have not plummeted like ours.

You would have to bankrupt the developer first.

Kind of goes against the whole "bailing out the developers" process that is NAMA

NAMA does not own the properties, it owns the loans.

[ang]

Article on this in today's Indo



That is 383 million per hotel on average. How is this possible? How profitable are bloody hotels???



http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/nama-now-kingmaker-for-some-35-struggling-hotels-2308911.html


Hi DCon not too sure about this by % of loans for hotels we get to a figure of 3BN for hotels which would bring us to an average of 62.5 million per hotel.

Yes/NO ?

[DCon]

Hi DCon not too sure about this by % of loans for hotels we get to a figure of 3BN for hotels which would bring us to an average of 62.5 million per hotel.

Yes/NO ?

correct. apologies.

I forgot to quarter the 11.9 BN as I was in shock at the scale

[DCon]

The noble O'Donoghue is throwing in his five cents


FORMER CEANN comhairle and Kerry South Fianna Fáil TD John O’Donoghue has warned Nama against closing hotels which have come under its remit.

The National Assets Management Agency has acquired 35 hotels, it is understood.

This weekend Mr O’Donoghue warned there would be under-capacity in the hospitality sector if Nama began closing hotels and this would “disincentivise” people coming to Ireland.


Kathleen O’Regan-Sheppard, a director of Cork-Kerry Tourism until recently and a former president of the Irish Hotels Federation in Kerry, said “some politicians appear to be living in a parallel universe to the rest of us”.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0906/1224278287176.html

[ang]

So much for politicians not lobbying NAMA.

Do they even understand what they have done and what it means if NAMA tries to keep everything on it's books ?

Let's keep everything we have in NAMA but "sell off all the state assets" seems to be "the way"

[Griska]

It's a bit of a stretch from "the economy needs the banks" to "the economy needs the hotels". John O'D. does indeed appear to be living in some parallel universe. Hotels that are doing well do not tout rooms for €59 pn, so the idea that we need those hastilly erected dumps is laughable.

[Gruffalo]

Once again O'Donoghue shows his detachment from reality.

[wickedfairy]

As FF will not reduce/eliminate the ridiculous tax on tourist travel, why not say if you are visiting Ireland and stay in a hotel, the airport tax you paid will come off the hotel bill.

now that is a clever idea, what are all these €100k plus dunderheads doing that they cant come up with something like that.

[wickedfairy]

Noel O'Callaghan cutting minimum wage, staff not happy. Time to boycott his hotels?

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hotel-first-to-cut-minimum-wage-2546316.html

[disability student]

Noel O'Callaghan cutting minimum wage, staff not happy. Time to boycott his hotels?

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hotel-first-to-cut-minimum-wage-2546316.html

Here is another news article with a brief mention of Comical Lenny at the end of paragraph.

Link:http://www.politico.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7204:davenport-hotel-workers-in-battle-to-defend-minimum-wage&catid=190:society&Itemid=882

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

I suggested on another forum a year or so back that any location that has a hotel sitting idle and in NAMA and a school nearby with rented prefab classrooms should have the hotel confiscated and converted to school use.

When you think about it many of the single-story hotels built in the last ten years were only built to take advantage of a tax shelter arrangement and I see no reason why kids should have to be taught in some crappy temporary shelter when there are newly built buildings nearby and which are to a large extent easily convertible into schools.

You only have to knock through say two or three guestrooms to make a classroom with heating systems already installed and each hotel has an office area for administration.

It wouldn't suit in all areas but it would make use of buildings that would otherwise begin to decay while in mothballs and it would reduce the cost of portakabin hire.

All such hotels would have had to conform to certain safety standards in order to open/operate and that would not be a million miles away from standards expected of a school.