Orkney visitor tax proposal is no answer to improving island economy

I refer to the article concerning the newly formed Orkney Conservation Trust’s call for the introduction of a £3 ‘tourist tax’ to cash in on Orkney’s tourism boom (Scotsman, 11 August).

While clearly well-intentioned, this proposal shows little understanding of how tourism works.

The UK is the second most expensive holiday destination in the world after Switzerland, and the cost of travelling to Orkney places it way above the UK average. For example, a return flight from London to Kirkwall next February costs one adult around £243, a return flight from London to Malaga on the same dates costs £48. So a family of five can travel from London to the south of Spain cheaper than one of them can fly to Orkney!

For one adult plus car to cross from the Scottish mainland to Orkney costs around £108.

Here’s a question: should a shop sell its wares at all-inclusive prices covering the cost of the goods, running costs, VAT and profit, or should it display its prices and, below them on the labels, add a charge to cover the cost of customers’ feet wearing out the flooring?

The answer, of course, is that customers expect to pay all-inclusive prices. They do not expect to have additional charges added to keep floors in good nick!

Exactly the same principle applies to the British population when enjoying our leisure time. We visit, we spend money on goods and services, and we leave with happy memories.

Local businesses benefit from our expenditure and governments at all levels benefit from the tax revenues that flow from it. In return, businesses must invest to ensure that they best meet the needs of their target markets, and governments, and especially local government, must invest in the essential infrastructure necessary to support our visitors – on things like roads, car parks and public toilets.

Do we honestly believe that making Orkney more expensive by charging every tourist an additional £3 to visit will improve the economy or the visitor experience?

When governments are encouraging our industrial giants to export to China, they don’t tax the Chinese to help recover the money spent building roads to Scottish factories, and nor should we tax visitors for coming here.

Visitors already pay 20% VAT and businesses pay their taxes and that should cover wear and tear.

There is a very real danger that the placing of this additional burden on customers would impair Orkney’s ability to compete with destinations at home and abroad. DAVID RICHARDSON Development Manager Highlands & Islands Federation of

Small Businesses, Dornoch