Edinburgh‘s new tourist tax will help make the city “more beautiful and welcoming”, the co-leader of the Scottish Greens has said.
Lorna Slater hailed the Scottish capital’s 5% visitor levy on overnight stays as capable of easing some of the pressures the city faces.
She said the rate agreed by city councillors last week could raise some £50million annually to be invested in Edinburgh’s public services and affordable housing.
Ms Slater, in an opinion piece published by the Edinburgh Evening News, said: “Visitor levies are a small and simple step that will help us to ensure tourists are able to contribute to the services they are using, and that will help us to make our city even more beautiful and welcoming.”
The Scottish Greens’ co-leader added that no one wants to stop people coming to the city, but locals have taken the strain of mass tourism’s toll on roads, paths and services.
Her comments come after members of the City of Edinburgh Council agreed the plans, which will bring in the charge on those staying in overnight accommodation.
Visitors staying in the city will have to pay a 5% fee per night, capped at seven nights under the changes.
Council leader Jane Meagher has described the levy as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to invest in the city. It comes after the Scottish Parliament approved legislation giving councils the ability to introduce such a charge.
The 5% charge will apply to people staying in hotels, B&Bs and other types of accommodation, including holiday lets. Tourists, people staying for work or visiting the city for other reasons will be charged, including Scots.
Under the council’s plans, the levy will begin for stays taking place after July 24, 2026. There will now be a nine-month transition period, with bookings paid for in part or in full after October 1, 2025, being liable for the levy.
A full council meeting was held last week to discuss the proposal after it was backed by the local authority’s policy and sustainability committee.
Green and SNP groups on the city council urged the Labour-run administration to adopt a higher rate of the levy, proposing 7% and 8% respectively. They argued more money is needed for housing in the city.
Conservative councillor Iain Whyte said his group did not back the levy, arguing it would damage tourism. He put forward proposals in recognition it would happen anyway.
Ms Meagher said last week: “We have listened to many voices and come to a conclusion that is sustainable, consistent with legislation and and will enhance our city.
“I want to make this scheme a success. If there are reasons, outwith our control, the scheme is held up by other factors, I would like to point out that 4%, 5%, 7% or 8% of nothing is precisely nothing.”
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) warned councillors against a “headlong rush to be the first” to introduce the charge.
Garry Clark, FSB’s development manager for Edinburgh and the east of Scotland, said earlier: “Edinburgh’s small accommodation providers haven’t yet been given all the information necessary to plan for the potential impact on them.”
UK Hospitality Scotland’s Executive Director Leon Thompson said: “Not only has Edinburgh’s visitor levy been confirmed, but so too has the hit to the city’s competitiveness as a leading tourist destination.
“Our fundamental concern has always been that this levy will only serve to make visitors’ trips to Edinburgh more expensive, ultimately reducing their spending in the wider visitor economy and deterring future visits.
“It’s now the job of the council to use these funds wisely to improve the capital’s attractiveness as a visitor destination and mitigate the impact of the levy on businesses.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
