A 'damaging' claim made by Conor McGregor in his recent interview with Tucker Carlson has been rubbished and branded 'misleading'. The former two-weight UFC champion claimed there are no hotels available for tourists in Wexford because they are “all transferred into IPAS”. He stated: “There is (sic) no hotels available in Wexford. They’re all transferred into IPAS, which are international protection applicant services. It’s this racket where they’re all getting housed.” General Manager of the Talbot Hotel in Wexford and spokesperson for Visit Wexford Robert Miller said the claims are “misleading” and “damaging” to local businesses in the county. “Wexford is open for tourism,” he told South East Radio. “We have over 240 accommodation offerings – from hotels and guesthouses to B&Bs and self-catering stays – and a strong midweek and weekend trade." Mr Miller said some hotels in the county have entered into agreements with the State to house asylum seekers, but that these were in the minority and revealed how Wexford has a 58% average occupancy rate at the moment, which is just slightly below the national figure of 61%. However, despite evidence that his claims were clearly incorrect, McGregor has doubled down on the comments he made as he hit back. Sharing an article quoting Mr Miller, McGregor wrote on Facebook: "*SHOCKER* "Tourism board attempts to deflect on behalf of its government overlord / paymaster. "Read the comments of the real people of Ireland with real experiences. "We can all see the trajectory this country is headed. "As President, I put an immediate stop and reverse on this absolute money racket / destruction of Irelands good will and they know it." Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts.