Read more: How Ireland's new government will work

In a move to boost tourism to Ireland the new Fine Gael-Labour coalition government has promised to abolish the travel tax on airline passengers to encourage airlines to bring greater numbers of passengers into the Republic.

The new program for government says the coalition will abolish the travel tax as part of a deal with airlines to restore lost routes.

The move comes in response to a study that found passenger numbers to the Republic fell from 7.7 million in 2007 to 5.6 million last year.

Fine Gael campaigned on a platform that said the travel tax would be abolished if airlines reached certain targets on passenger numbers and on internships for college graduates.

A travel tax of 10 euro, introduced two years ago for departing passengers, had been reduced to 3 euro. The new move is said to make the country even more attractive to visitors and airlines alike.

Read more: How Ireland's new government will work