Greens urge councils to follow Edinburgh in rolling out ‘tourist tax’
The Scottish Greens have urged councils across Scotland to follow Edinburgh’s lead and consider introducing a visitor levy to help fund vital local services such as schools, libraries and housing
Edinburgh is the first council in Scotland to introduce the levy which will go live today.
The scheme will raise much-needed funds from visitors staying in the capital. The Scottish Greens say other councils should now look closely at whether a similar approach could work in their own areas.
Visitor levies are already used in popular tourist destinations around the world, including Paris, Barcelona and New York.
The power to apply a levy was secured by Scottish Green MSPs during previous budget negotiations. Edinburgh’s Green councillors had led calls for such a levy in Scotland’s capital since 2011.
Edinburgh Greens councillor Ben Parker said:
“I'm delighted the visitor levy has finally been introduced in the capital and will start raising much-needed funds to invest in housing and public services across the city.
“The idea of a 'tourist tax' was first suggested by Green councillor Steve Burgess way back in 2011 and was met by howls of outraged opposition from hoteliers at the time.
“In reality, this is a very modest addition to what visitors are already paying to stay in Edinburgh, but it will raise vital funds to invest in public services in the capital. This is a milestone to be welcomed."
Scottish Green MSP for Edinburgh Central, Lorna Slater, said:
“This will be a big boost for Edinburgh and for local services.
“We hope that other councils will be watching closely, learning from Edinburgh’s experience and considering how a visitor levy could work for them too.
“Tourism can bring a lot of money into local economies, but councils and residents often see very little benefit from it. It is right that tourists are able to contribute to the services they are using, and that local people feel the benefit.”