August 26, 2022 - 1640 views
Janet Finch-Saunders, the Member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy, is once again calling for the Welsh Government to step back from the precipice and withdraw its plans to introduce a tourism tax in Wales.
Mrs. Finch-Saunders said: “In Wales 25% of registered businesses are in the visitor economy. In Conwy County alone the tourism economy was worth nearly £900 million in 2019, employing thousands of people. The importance of this industry locally and to Wales cannot be overstated.
“With this industry suffering significantly over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, with businesses in Aberconwy reporting a loss of revenue of between 60-85%, and the cost-of-living crisis further impacting on the tourism and hospitality sector, now more than ever this industry needs support not new taxes.
“Hitting our hard-working business owners and tourism operators, many of them small to medium sized businesses, a tourism tax will only reduce Wales’s competitiveness in respect of other holiday destinations and reduce visitor numbers.
“These concerns are already raised on the continent; the Mallorca Hoteliers Federation has come out strongly against the Government’s ongoing tourism tax citing a negative impact on international competitiveness.
“Having told the Welsh Government in the Senedd previously, of the devastating impact this tax will have on our tourism businesses, I am once again urging them to withdraw from this regressive and destructive proposal and instead start to back our tourism economy in Wales."
The Welsh Government’s Programme for Government, and the Cooperation Agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru, both contain commitments to introduce levies.
Rebecca Evans, Minister for Finance and Local Government, said in a statement earlier this year: "Visitor levies are a common feature in tourist destinations internationally. They are an opportunity for visitors to make an investment in local infrastructure and services, which in turn make tourism a success.
"Without such a levy, local communities face an undue burden to fund local services and provisions on which tourists rely. From keeping the beaches and pavements clean, through to maintaining local parks, toilets and footpaths – the critical infrastructure that supports tourism should be supported by all those that rely on it."
