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Labour Mayors Pledge to Cap Tourist Tax at 5%
Confirmed
In Short: Labour's regional mayors in England have agreed to limit a new fee on visitors' overnight stays to 5%, amid concerns from hospitality bosses.
Labour's regional mayors in England have pledged to cap a new fee on visitors' overnight stays at 5%, according to reports. This move comes after hospitality bosses warned that the tax could put jobs at risk.
The decision follows a letter from the Labour mayors in 10 city regions to Chancellor John Healey and Local Government Secretary Angela Rayner, stating that 5% represented a 'reasonable ceiling' on the tax.
However, Reform UK's two regional mayors and the two Conservative ones are likely to oppose any levy, given criticism from their national parties of the policy.
Mayors will be given the power to impose a new fee on visitors' overnight stays, with decisions taken by local leaders who know their area best. The Government expects mayors to be able to impose the levy by the end of the Parliament.
While some mayors have backed the move, others have expressed caution or ruled out introducing the tax, citing concerns over the burden on budget holidays and the potential impact on local tourism industries.
What's confirmed
- Labour's regional mayors in England have pledged to cap a new fee on visitors' overnight stays at 5%, according to reports. This move comes after hospitality bosses warned that the tax could put jobs at risk.
- The decision follows a letter from the Labour mayors in 10 city regions to Chancellor John Healey and Local Government Secretary Angela Rayner, stating that 5% represented a 'reasonable ceiling' on the tax.
- However, Reform UK's two regional mayors and the two Conservative ones are likely to oppose any levy, given criticism from their national parties of the policy.
- Mayors will be given the power to impose a new fee on visitors' overnight stays, with decisions taken by local leaders who know their area best. The Government expects mayors to be able to impose the levy by the end of the Parliament.
- While some mayors have backed the move, others have expressed caution or ruled out introducing the tax, citing concerns over the burden on budget holidays and the potential impact on local tourism industries.
What's still developing
- However, mayors will not be allowed to exempt whole localities within their regions from the tax, to avoid creating confusion for visitors and businesses.
- Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said his party's two mayors in Greater Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire "won't touch" the levy, which he branded a "holiday tax".
- Labour's South Yorkshire mayor Oliver Coppard welcomed the move but told BBC Radio Sheffield that Labour mayors would consult industry leaders before bringing it in.
- Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan called for the levy to come in sooner rather than later, adding it was right for the capital to have the same power as other global cities to use the charge.
- John Chappell, who runs five caravan parks in Skegness, Lincolnshire, told BBC Your Voice that many English tourist resorts have visitors on tight budgets already struggling with the cost of car travel.
- Under the plans, local leaders will be able to bring in an uncapped levy, dubbed a "tourist tax", as a percentage of the cost of hotels, bed and breakfasts and other types of accommodation rather than a flat fee.
- Its chief executive Allen Simpson claimed it would add about £100 to £120 on average to the cost of a family holiday in England, amid fears mayors would make use of the fact there is, in theory, no upper limit for the levy.
- He said holidays in the UK are “already more expensive” than they appear because of higher VAT, even before the tourist tax.