From our friends over at the : Business: BreakingNews.ie
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From our friends over at the : Business: BreakingNews.ie
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The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) has expressed deep concern at reports that the tourism VAT rate is to be increased as part of Budget 2019.
Michael Lennon, President of the IHF said the mooted increase to 13.5% would be disastrous for Ireland’s competitiveness as a tourism destination and represented a failure to recognise its economic potential and recovery, particularly among regional and rural tourism businesses.
He said:
“The proposed increase would be reckless and would result in Ireland having a higher VAT rate on tourism than 26 countries in Europe with which we compete.
[quote]We are already a very high-cost economy by international standards so it is alarming that the Government is now looking at imposing additional taxes on tourists and making our country less attractive as a destination.[/quote]
“Any increase would hit tourism throughout the country with businesses outside of Dublin being hit the hardest."
Mr Lennon said that the introduction of the 9% VAT rate in 2011 showed great foresight by the government.
He said that it recognised the tourism industry’s ability to deliver on jobs across the country.
“We have achieved this by providing a quality product, high levels of service and competing internationally for business every day.
“We recognise that Government needs to tax industry to pay for the many social calls on the exchequer.
[quote]However, we have argued that the best way to generate the additional funds needed for public services is to support those business sectors that are contributing.[/quote]
Mr Lennon said that the industry is already facing enormous difficulties due to the uncertainty around Brexit and the fall in the value of Sterling.
“UK tour operators, for example, represent up to 30 per cent of the business for many hotels. With bookings made up to two years in advance, prices in many cases are already locked in, meaning hoteliers would be left to pick up the cost of the VAT increase," he said.
Commenting on the VAT report published by the Department of Finance during the summer, Mr Lennon said that it failed to take account fully the benefits of tourism to the regions or the serious risks associated with Brexit.
“It also lacked balance, basing much of its analysis on Irish household spending patterns while choosing to ignore that the vast majority (80%) of revenue generated by tourism comes from out of state visitors,” he said.
- Digital Desk
From our friends over at the : Irishexaminer.com
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From our friends over at the : Business: BreakingNews.ie
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The new V&A Dundee has welcomed its 100,000th visitor in less than a month since opening.
The museum designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, part of the city’s £1 billion waterfront regeneration, opened its doors on September 15.
Grandmother Sheila Harkness from Monifieth, Angus, was the 100,000th person to visit on Monday.
She took a trip to the design museum on the banks of the Tay with daughter Sharron McAllister and grandchildren James, 10 and Kirsty, eight, from Dunfermline, Fife.
They were given a one-year family and friends membership and a Kengo Kuma print to mark the occasion.
V&A Dundee director Philip Long said: “I’m very proud and delighted that in just over three weeks 100,000 people have already visited the museum.
“The feedback we have received from visitors has been fantastic and means so much to all of the team.
“It’s been a joy to see people enjoying the galleries, exhibitions and learning activities as well as exploring the wonderful building and enjoying all it offers.”
V&A Dundee is expected to welcome around 500,000 visitors in its first 12 months, and around 350,000 a year thereafter.
- Press Association
From our friends over at the : Irishexaminer.com
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Ireland’s leading technology solutions and services provider, Datapac, has announced that it has designed and implemented a new IT infrastructure for information and document management company, Kefron.
In a deal worth €200,000, Datapac’s digital transformation solution enhances data storage, security and remote working capabilities for Kefron.
Founded in Dublin, Kefron is a leading information and document management company, and employs over 150 people throughout Ireland and the UK.
It provides solutions including document scanning and storage services, accounts payable automation, electronic document management solutions and archive consulting to customers across the legal, financial, and public sectors.
Following a competitive tender, Datapac was chosen to deliver a comprehensive technology services overhaul at Kefron.
This included replacing several of the company’s servers and installing an advanced new Storage Area Network (SAN) platform.
As part of the deal, Datapac is providing proactive support and management of Kefron’s ICT infrastructure.
Our customers can rest assured that in achieving this standard Kefron has demonstrated our #compliance regarding all information security matters including #DataProtection, #privacy and #IT governance within our industry.
— Kefron (@kefrongroup) October 1, 2018
Visit our website to learn more: https://t.co/wTCEV6LRbx pic.twitter.com/mOWq3Ze9lD
Jonathan Purvis, IT manager, Kefron, said:
“From the outset we knew that this would be a major project, especially given the fact that our stringent service level agreements with customers meant that it needed to be carried out without causing any downtime whatsoever.
[quote]We now have an advanced IT infrastructure that offers the highest levels of performance and security, which are absolutely critical in our industry.[/quote]
Lisa Collins, business relationship manager, Datapac, said:
“Kefron is a real Irish success story, having grown from a small local operation to one of the foremost document management providers operating throughout Ireland and the UK.
[quote]Datapac was uniquely positioned to design, implement and manage their upgraded IT infrastructure. We’ve increased flexibility and productivity across Kefron’s entire organisation and enabled their employees to fully embrace mobile working.[/quote]
- Digital Desk
From our friends over at the : Irishexaminer.com
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