It could be win-win - but Edinburgh must be careful how it spends the 'tourist tax'

Six months after that, Glasgow will introduce it’s own tourist tax after councillors on Thursday voted in favour. That’s expected to raise about £16 million a year for Scotland’s biggest city.

But despite the sums involved, not everyone wants a piece of the action. South Ayrshire Council is considering shelving its tourist tax while Western Isles Council put their plans on hold. Both are concerned about the impact on local businesses and the potential for discouraging visitors to areas with fragile tourism economies.

And that is the challenge for this legislation which was introduced by the Scottish Government. It gives every local authority the option to introduce a visitor levy but it’s a one-size-fits-all solution to an issue that is different across the country.

Edinburgh may have more tourists than it needs but that is not the case in Dumfries and Galloway. In the north Highlands the problem is not mass tourism but the specific issue around camper vans heading to the North Coast 500. Every region needs something different.

In South Ayrshire the recommendation to abandon plans for a tourist tax followed a public consultation process where only 15 per cent of respondents were in favour of it going ahead.

But it’s a brave local authority that rejects the idea because the visitor levy is essentially free money. At a time when local authorities are cash strapped, it represents a relatively easy way to raise cash without the complaints that come with changes to council tax.

But there will be complaints if the money is not used wisely. The catalyst for the tax has been a big rise in visitor numbers and an acknowledgement that visitors do cause issues for local people. Growing dissatisfaction has led to demonstrations over mass tourism in Spain and Italy.

At 12.5 per cent Amsterdam now has the highest tourism tax in Europe but there is no sign of it impacting visitor numbers. The city’s Mayor believes tourists will keep on coming but instead of feeling overwhelmed, locals will be more understanding because they will be able to see the benefits. Revenues raised there will be spent on city services including recreational spaces and community centres.

In Edinburgh the visitor levy could raise up to £50 million a year and the City Council has said that will be spent on building affordable homes, participatory budgeting where local communities get to decide on project funding with the rest going on arts and culture and civic infrastructure.

That bit is crucial. If the funding simply disappears into the vast pot of local government finance, an opportunity will have been lost. Instead there is the chance to show that tourism benefits not just international hotel operators but also local people who are living and working rather than visiting. That spending needs to be visible. If it delivers an army of workers picking up litter, emptying bins and cleaning graffiti in hi-vis jackets branded “Paid for by the Visitor Levy” then tourists get to feel they’ve done some good and we all get to enjoy, alongside them, a better city. That is a win-win for everyone.