SF Seeks Donegal Border Tourism Fillip

Two Sinn Féin politicians have joined forces across the Donegal border in a bid to place more emphasis on tourism in the region.

Derry Councillor Maeve Mc Laughlin and Donegal Sinn Féin Councillor Padraig MacLochlainn are pushing for an increased focus by the Irish government on tourism development and promotion of the Inishowen peninsula.

They also want to include the wider county of Donegal as an integral part of the North West Region with Derry City as its hub, with a view from Innishowen toward Magilligan in Co Londonderry pictured here.

Padraig MacLochlainn, the Sinn Féin candidate for the forthcoming European election, emphasised that tourism could be an economic lifeline for the region, particularly now during the economic downturn, Inishowen and Donegal in general, could be developed through common tourism partnerships with Derry City Council.

"The natural beauty and resources of Donegal combined with its proximity to the historic attractions of Derry City is under promoted as the region of outstanding natural beauty that it is," he said.

"Sections of the Inishowen 100 route for example require attention and repair; there is a lack of signposting to and maintenance of heritage sites like Northburgh Castle in Greencastle, Grianan of Aileach and Ireland’s most northerly point - Malin Head, just to highlight a few areas where there is a dearth of visitor interpretative and service facilities.

"Inishowen Tourism is consigned to one small office in Carndonagh because of inadequate budget allocation. Imaginative initiatives need to be taken to make tourist information more widely available.

In Northern Ireland, Derry City's Maeve McLaughlin also called for the manner in which the North West is marketed in tourism terms to be revamped.

"We would urge an increased level of co-operation between the tourism authorities in the Derry City and Donegal County Council areas, with a view to establishing a cross-border tourism organization between the two regions.

"Both areas enjoy common links in terms of shared history, natural hinterland and established business partnerships that would make sense of a mutual tourism strategy," she said, also noting that the

Irish government has previously funded assistance to the City of Derry airport and previous cross border tourism marketing initiatives.

"It is clear that the Northern Ireland Tourist Board has not delivered for Derry and that current Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland activity have been ineffective for Donegal. A new approach is required urgently," she concluded.

(BMcC/JM)