British Viking city ‘straight out of Harry Potter’ becomes latest to reveal plans for new tourist tax to gain £5m a year
A BRITISH Viking city “straight out of Harry Potter” has become the latest to reveal plans for a new tourist tax.
Labour run City of York hopes the levy on visitors could bring in an extra £5 million a year.
The move would make York the latest UK destination to adopt a European-style levy.
Manchester now has a £1 nightly charge for hotel stays.
The city is infamous for attractions such as The Shambles, often referred to as “Harry Potter Street”, for its resemblance to Diagon Alley, and the magnificent York Minister, a Gothic cathedral dating back to the 7th century.
Visitors also flock to the Jorvik Viking Centre and enjoy the city’s lively pub scene, with over 350 bars, as well as its rich history in chocolate-making.
In a bid to raise funds for the upkeep of its historic sites and infrastructure, York’s council is looking to introduce a tourist levy.
Councillor Pete Kilbane, the council’s economy executive member, described the levy as “a no brainer” during a meeting of the economy, place, access, and transport committee.
He said: “A lot of the posh hotels say their customers wouldn’t think twice about it, and some are surprised there isn’t already one.
“The question if how we do it.
If the hospitality industry is interested in doing it voluntarily, we’re open to that, but they seem to have pulled away from it.”
Katie Lomas, a Labour councillor and finance executive member, added: “People are already very used to paying an extra small charge per night on their hotel bill in Europe.
“What we want to do is look at how we charge a levy for tourists.”
However, not everyone is on board.
Conservative councillor Chris Steward argued that tax could be seen as an unnecessary revenue grab, accusing the Labour-led council of looking for more money to fix financial “black holes”.
He said: “Because these taxes are becoming more common on the the continent, a lot of councillors see it as a good way to get a bit of free money.
“I think it would just be seen as a revenue raiser.”
While local councils currently lack the legal power to impose a tourist tax directly, York could follow Manchester’s example by introducing a voluntary levy through businesses such as hotels or set up a business improvement district to collect the charge from hospitality firms.
York City Council has been approached for comment.
'Tourist tax' across the UK:
Manchester now has a £1 nightly charge for hotel stays.
Birmingham and Cornwall are proposing a £1-a-night tax, while Edinburgh is looking at £14 a night.
Cambridge City Council had been debating a £2 charge per person, per night, to rise to £3
While Wales is looking to charge up to £21 a night, and London £60.
Liverpool is said to charge 1.6% of the accomodation bill.
But Liverpool councils are looking to raise the cost to 5.5% over the next five years.