Council leader condemns ‘tourist tax’ as ‘unfortunate and distasteful’ move

DRINKS: Hostelry cashless during Open will sell vouchers to visitors with some drinks £1 more expensive

One of Carnoustie’s most popular pubs is preparing to hike prices for people visiting the town during the Open. The move by the 19th Hole Hotel has been slammed as a “tourist tax” by a senior councillor, but one of Scotland’s leading licensing lawyers has found it to be within the law. The hostelry outlined the pricing policy on social media and announced the bar will be cashless for the duration of the tournament. Locals and regulars have to access a PubCard, which they can “load” with cash. It can only be secured before the championship starts, however, meaning almost all visitors to the town will have to purchase vouchers to pay for drinks at inflated prices. More than 170,000 tourists are expected to come to Carnoustie to watch the Open Championship and other pubs have rejected price increases. One resident criticised the plan on social media, saying: “Looks to me like you are looking to fleece tourists because

We are investing £14k which includes a marquee, extra bar units and more staff. This has to be recouped. ALLAN FRIEL-MYLES

they are not in possession of a pub card. “In my opinion it is pure greed on your part.” Speaking on behalf of the venue, Allan Friel-Myles defended the policy: “We are investing more than £14,000 in The Open, which includes a marquee, additional bar units, astro turf and a 20m bar, and we have also substantially increased the number of staff. This has to be recouped, and we expect around 14,000 transactions. Although some drinks prices will be lower, others will increase by up to £1 to cover the outlay.” Licensing lawyer Janet Hood said the policy of charging one group of people more than another was legal but questioned the message it would send out. She said: “This is a perfectly legitimate mechanism as long as the prices are clearly displayed, however I would ask if this is going to be good for Scottish tourism.” Angus Council leader David Fairweather criticised the move, branding it “unfortunate and distasteful”. He said: “This may well be legal, but the fact is that this loophole was designed to allow people such as OAPs to benefit from discounted drinks, not to boost prices as some kind of tourist tax to inflict on people visiting the area. “In my view, this is an unfortunate and distasteful position, and I think introducing a two-tier pricing policy like this ethically questionable. “I think there should be a level playing field and I have to wonder what kind of impression it gives people who are being asked to pay more for their drink than the person standing next to them.”

19th Hole Hotel in Carnoustie is increasing prices for The Open.