An extra £1 million sterling (#1.6 million) has been allocated to fund a marketing drive to promote Northern Ireland to the rest of the world in an attempt to offset the impact of foot-and-mouth.

Economy Minister Sir Reg Empey said this addition to the annual £14 million for the Northern Ireland Tourist Board, would be used to counteract the "negative and often inaccurate" reports of the disease's effect on Northern Ireland.

Sir Reg said: "The time is now right to launch the recovery plan which has been put together by the Northern Ireland Tourist Board." The plan was to limit damage and restore consumer confidence, he added.

"It encompasses promotional and marketing activities in North America, Europe, Britain and the Republic of Ireland, all of which are key markets for our industry," he said.

But getting a positive message across, particularly in the US, may not be easy. Sir Reg has said Americans believe they are in danger of catching foot-and-mouth if they visit the UK or Ireland.

The fall-off in visitors and the cancellation of major events is already affecting local businesses. Last week local coach operators went to Stormont to lobby MLAs. They estimate the cancellation of a series of events, including GAA and rugby matches, and school trips, has cost them more than £1,000 a week since the outbreak began.

A group spokesman, Mr Declan McBride, said: "We wanted to show the ministers in Stormont how deeply affected we are by this crisis." he said. "I have also been contacted by operators who say they are losing as much as £8,000 per week, which means that a total of something like £650,000 is being lost every week due to the crisis." Mr McBride said private coach operators in the North would seek a three-month period of grace from banks, similar to that enjoyed by their counterparts in the South.

Leading hoteliers have also met local Assembly members to seek government support. The hospitality and tourism industry employs 35,000 people in Northern Ireland, with 13,500 employed directly in hotels. The industry is estimated to be worth around £350 million to the local economy. But hotels across Northern Ireland are reporting a flood of cancellations in recent weeks, with business down by around 50 per cent on this time last year.

Mr John Mooney, vice-president of the Northern Ireland Hotels Federation, said it was important to send out a message that Northern Ireland was open for business, in terms of conferences, events and family visitors.

Meanwhile, in Newry, town centre manager Mr Barry Owens said the Department of Agriculture's decision to enforce a ring of steel around the Newry and Mourne district council area was seriously damaging business.