Coronavirus: £50 tourism voucher will arrive 'when the time is right'

The Giant's Causeway is among Northern Ireland's most popular attractions

A holiday at home voucher scheme aimed at stimulating the tourism sector in NI "will be introduced when the time is right", the Department for the Economy has said.

The £50 voucher was initially proposed as part of a tourism working group established by Economy Minister Diane Dodds.

In September, funding was allocated to roll out the voucher.

The £50 can be used at a range of participating businesses.

It is not clear how the scheme will work, or if the voucher will be per household or individual.

It continues to be developed by Tourism NI.

The draft document which put forward the proposals had suggested running a voucher scheme in partnership with major NI media outlets.

The paper said the promotions would allocate a set number of £50 vouchers to readers to redeem at participating businesses and would be available to all households in Northern Ireland.

The tourism sector has been subject to restrictions for the majority of the year as a result of the pandemic.

Economy Minister Diane Dodds established a working group, made up of industry representatives, to make recommendations as to how to aid the recovery of the sector.

A spokesperson for the Department for the Economy said: "The scheme will provide consumers with a discount of up to £50 with participating accommodation providers, attractions and experience providers.

"The scheme will be introduced when the time is right and will aim to stimulate demand by incentivising people to take staycations and support the local economy."

Northern Ireland's tourism sector has previously been valued at £1bn and the industry had believed 2020 would be a record year.

The coronavirus pandemic, global lockdowns and current travel restrictions have damaged the international market.