Plans have been unveiled to see Edinburgh to become the first city in the United Kingdom to impose a visitor levy.
On Tuesday (6 September), Nicola Sturgeon announced that the Scottish Government is set to introduce a bill that would allow council’s to enact tourist tax schemes.
This proposed scheme would introduce a tourist fee for overnight visitors.
Following the lead of other cities such as Barcelona, overnight tourists would be charged an additional fee for accommodation.
It is estimated that this scheme could generate £15 million each year. These funds would then be used to pay for infrastructure and services.
Nicola Sturgeon stated that, “we will introduce a Local Visitor Levy Bill to give local authorities additional fiscal flexibility. This will help councils, if they so choose, to fund activities related to tourism and related infrastructure.”
This sentiment was echoed by City of Edinburgh Council Leader, Cammy Day who expressed “We believe it’s right to ask visitors to make a small contribution to help us sustain and improve our tourism offer while managing its impact.”
“We’ve been building the case for Edinburgh to become the first city in the UK to introduce such a levy, consistently and repeatedly making the case to Scottish ministers without success – until now.”
Day further added that, “Ultimately the income this generates will help us continue to invest in and manage the success of tourism on our city, making sure we continue to offer one of the most enviable and enjoyable visitor experiences in the world – while bringing new and additional benefits to our residents who live and work here all year round.”
