A report has recommended that Liverpool City Council pilot a scheme that would see tourists pay a tax on top of their nightly rate at hotels across the city.
MP’s and Councillors are being encouraged to lobby the government to allow local levies. A tourist tax is levied in many European countries..
Metro Mayor Steve Rotherham has suggested that Liverpool could be a “test bed” for the rest of the country.
UKHospitality, which represents thousands of hotels, said it opposed any new tax but some hoteliers say they would support a small charge.
“There’s less funding out there coming from government and from Europe for obvious reasons so we need to have that fighting fund to allow us to compete on a worldwide stage,” said Enda Rylands from the Liverpool Hospitality Association.
Mr Rotheram said: “If the government are looking for a pilot area it could be the Liverpool City Region whose tourist industry is literally booming at the moment.”
He commented that the idea was in the “early stages of scrutiny” and that”we need to discuss with the government… to see whether we can be a test-bed for the rest of the country”
Bill Addy, chief executive of Liverpool BID Company, representing 1,500 BID levy payers in Liverpool city centre, said: “I would welcome and encourage a thorough debate around the issue of a Tourism Tax for Liverpool. A £1 per hotel bed/per night tax could generate up to £3m a year, which would then be ring-fenced for the Visitor Economy to allow us to deliver a programme of support for culture and tourism.
“Liverpool has a burgeoning visitor economy that needs continuous investment for it to sustain its growth. We need to support businesses and invest in skill development across the sector, covering a whole range of roles, from front to back of house. The debate needs to include all sectors of the Visitor Economy.”
The report also says the waterfront and marina should be better utilised and more should be done to improve Mathew Street.
Imposing any tax would require government approval of new legislation before it could be introduced by a council.