Highland tourist tax

A tourist tax in the Highlands is set to be put out to public consultation.

Highland Council is to discuss the proposal this week – but any levy would not apply to children, recommends a report.

Tourism is the Highland region’s most important industry and supports 25,000 jobs.

Provisional figures for last year suggest almost 6.5 million visitors came to the area.

In a new report, council officers estimated that a so-called transient visitor levy could raise between £5 million to £10m a year.

The council report said: “Highland is not alone in experiencing visitor pressures and seeking ways of raising income to try and address these.