MIXED RESPONSE TO TOURISM BILL
The Scottish Government’s new Tourist Levy Bill, which would permit councils to add a surcharge to overnight accommodation stays, has been met with both positivity and caution in Lochaber.
Commonly referred to as the tourist tax, the 36-page bill, as introduced, would apply to overnight stays totalling six or more hours in hotels, hostels, guest houses, and bed and breakfasts. Also included is self-catering accommodation, camping sites and caravan parks, as well as long-stay boat moorings. All net proceeds raised by authorities from the levy would be used to support facilities for visitors or the scheme.
The bill was welcomed by Lochaber Chamber of Commerce, whose chief executive Frazer Coupland said it was important to see the income as a positive resource rather than a damaging tourism tax.
He said: "If this levy is implemented, it can eventually provide valuable additional income to local authorities that are also experiencing financial constraints. Many other countries and regions have successfully introduced similar levies without causing significant harm. Of course the detail will be important. How will the tax be collected, and more importantly distributed? It is essential businesses being taxed have a say in distribution."
Highland Council leader Raymond Bremner and Highlands and Islands MSP Ariane Burgess echoed the notion that the levy could support local services, with Councillor Bremner saying: “The Highland Council has long supported the idea of a tourist levy to enable the local authority to invest in local infrastructure."
Ms Burgess said the money could be invested in community-led housing.
Accommodation levies are found in many European countries. In some areas the revenues are used as general council income, while others use it for specific projects.
The council carried out a consultation of over 6,600 Highland residents, businesses and visitors from June to October 2019, and found general support for the levy.
Including day visitors and cruise passengers, the Highlands welcomes more than six million visitors a year.
However, some accommodation providers this week offered a more cautious tone.
Steve Ham, commercial director at West Holidays, said introducing a levy off the back of the pandemic and cost of living crisis could prove detrimental. He said: “Tourist accommodation already drives so much spending in the Highland economy, and we need to be very careful to avoid pricing ourselves out of the market. In addition, the way this would operate for holiday lets is very unclear, as is what the money raised can be spent on. This is all driving uncertainty at the worst time for our businesses.”
Steve Day, who owns the family-run Ben Nevis Guesthouse in Glen Nevis, had more serious misgivings about the proposal: “They haven’t even got the Short Term Lets Bill right yet, so to now land this on us is beyond belief.
“By the sound of things they are going to be asking us to collect it. How do they expect us to do that, and who is going to police the people who come in with campervans and tents?
“It just hasn’t been thought through properly at all and it’s us, the business owners, who are going to get stung again.”
The bill will now be examined by a parliamentary committee and open to amendments. If it passes an MSP vote to become an act, local authorities will still need to undertake public consultations before setting rates, meaning it could be two years before the levy comes into force.