The best of times, the Wurst of times

The weakened Euro combined with further marketing of the county in Australia could attract significant visitor numbers bringing a welcome boost to the local economy, according to one councillor from South Australia.

It is almost four years since Councillor Sue Wurst of Clare and Gilbert Valleys Council in South Australia visited County Clare for the first time and, while the things she loves about the area have remained constant, there are noticeable differences.
“Business is a little quieter and that has been a bit sad to see that but the countryside is still looking beautiful, the people are as welcoming but yeah, we are aware that business is a bit quiet,” Councillor Wurst told The Clare Champion.
“I guess the people we have spoken to, they are conscious that they are going through hard times so that is a bit sad. I can see that people are worried about the economic future. I can see that people are concerned that lots of people are emigrating from Ireland, you have been through that for hundreds of years, you don’t want it to happen again. You don’t want to lose your good young people and certainly people have mentioned that in conversation,” she added.
On her last trip, Sue was gushing in her praise for Clare’s tourism offering in terms of scenery, heritage sites and hospitality.
“When I left in 2008, I brought some wonderful memories. I was able to talk to the people of Clare and the council and give them a first-hand account of the welcome and the friendship and the many attractions Ireland has to offer and the many advantages of coming to a place that is close to our hearts. I think that worked because I know many people who have come here, particularly because of the links between the two locations,” she said.
While there are difficult economic conditions here, South Australia is not experiencing the same uncertainty. According to the councillor, this makes it a great time for Clare, Ireland, to capitalise on the relationship between the two areas.
“With the dollar quite high, more and more people are travelling abroad to holiday. When we booked our ticket, the man said ‘there is another person going overseas’, so with the dollar high lots of people are going overseas and because the links with Clare are in the newspaper, they are often coming to Ireland,” Councillor Wurst comments.
“You are such warm friendly people, you cannot do much more to attract people. You give us a lovely welcome when we come here and your attractions are wonderful. More marketing in Australia would be good but it is a big ask for Irish people to travel the 24 hours on a plane to get to Australia and vice versa so I think you have to be yourself. What you have to offer is unique and something we feel very comfortable with. A lot of people in Australia have Irish links or some sort of connection with Ireland so it doesn’t take much to convince them to come over here. Even footballers, Irish footballers, are now playing in Australia so that alone has been good,” she continued.
Councillor Wurst believes there are other mutually advantageous ways of maximising the relationship between the two communities.
“Certainly, there are more opportunities for business links between Clare, Ireland and Clare, South Australia. There is, of course, the wine, and tourism generally but I’m sure that as people feel more comfortable and make more links, they will explore other things. That is for sure because business, as always, operates on friendships and relationships. Irish people are so easy to have a relationship with, that is the basis of good business. A lot of the wine makers, not just Tim Adams but a lot of them come to Ireland and although their agent maybe in Dublin, a lot of them will make the trip over here to confirm that link,” she outlined.
While large numbers of Irish people are emigrating to Australia, the link between County Clare and its South Australian counterpart has not meant an influx of people into the Clare Valley.
“We have met a few Irish people, yes, but I guess they go to the big cities first and that is perhaps where they get work and then they might come up to Clare to see what it is like. We are quite a small town really. Irish people immigrating to Clare, South Australia is not something I have seen. I think people holiday in Clare but live in the big cities,” Councillor Wurst concluded.