The Welsh Government has launched a public consultation on proposals to give local authorities the powers to introduce a visitor levy as a so-called "tourism tax".
The levy would be a small charge paid by people staying overnight in accommodation in Wales. Each local authority in Wales will have the power to decide if they want to introduce a visitor levy and the money raised will be re-invested in local areas to support local tourism. This could be investment in keeping the beaches and pavements clean through to maintaining local parks, toilets, and footpaths.
More than 40 countries and holiday destinations around the world have introduced a form of visitor levy including Greece, France, Amsterdam, Barcelona, and California. The Welsh Government claim that a discretionary visitor levy for local authorities in Wales would represent a very small proportion of a visitor’s overall spend.
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The Welsh Government is asking people for the for their views on who should pay a levy, who would be charging and collecting the levy, how the levy could be best applied, and how revenues from the tax could be allocated. The process of translating proposals for a visitor levy into legislation, and then into delivery and implementation, will span a number of years and will be subject to approval by the Senedd.
The key decisions to be made are:
- The principle and purpose of a visitor levy
- Who should pay a visitor levy?
- Who should charge and collect a visitor levy?
- How a visitor levy could be applied?
- What discretionary powers a local authority could have for the operation of a visitor levy
- What information may be required to administer a visitor levy?
- How a visitor levy may be enforced
- How revenues from a visitor levy could be used and people made aware of the use of revenues and the benefits
Proposals for a visitor levy have been progressed through Welsh Government’s co-operation agreement with Plaid Cymru. Plaid's designated member Cefin Campbell said: “While Wales may be the first place in the UK to introduce such a levy we do not believe it will be the last – as we have seen recently a visitor levy may soon be introduced in Edinburgh so Wales is not alone.
“We want to continue to see a thriving tourism industry in Wales. It is vital we have sustainable, responsible tourism that works both for visitors and for the communities they are visiting. Should local authorities decide to implement a visitor levy it could make a real difference in communities across Wales to help develop and protect local services and infrastructure. We welcome all views in understanding what would work well for Wales and encourage everyone to contribute to the consultation.”
Rebecca Evans, minister for finance and local government, added: “These proposals are about preparing for the future. Our intention is to bring about a sense of shared responsibility between residents and visitors, to protect, and invest in, our local areas. By asking visitors – whether they have travelled from within Wales or from further afield – to make a small contribution towards maintaining and enhancing the place they are visiting we will encourage a more sustainable approach for tourism.”
Cymdeithas yr Iaith, The Welsh Language Society, responded positively to the proposed consultation. Spokesman Jeff Smith said: "Tourism has been seen as something that benefits visitors without consideration of the impact on the community. A number of areas in Wales are dependent on tourism but that is not sustainable in the long term.
"Visitors are charged a higher amount to visit attractions or to stay in a number of cities across Europe such as Paris, Venice, and Madrid and countries such as New Zealand and Japan. People still visit those places. If we believe that Wales is an attractive place to come and visit then it stands to reason that people will still come here even if they have to pay a small extra – especially if that benefits that area. Individuals don't have to be charged large sums either but raising a small tax on visitors would raise a significant amount that could be invested in local services and develop a sustainable industry that serves the community."
Responding to comments by the Vale of Glamorgan council leader, who said there are no plans to bring in a tourism levy in the Vale "for the moment", Welsh Conservative Senedd group leader Andrew RT Davies MS said: “After businesses in the Vale have been battered by Covid, and residents have been battered by the Vale Council’s inflation-busting council tax rise and the cost of living crisis, the last thing we need now is a tourism levy.
“The tourism and hospitality industry are clear that a tourism tax is a risk to livelihoods across Wales and it’s no different in the Vale. To rule out a tourism tax for the moment is simply not good enough. It’s time for the Labour-led Vale council to rule out this punitive levy for good.”
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