Listen "Behind the numbers: why are we taxing tourists? "
Episode Synopsis
In this episode of Behind the Numbers, we discuss the introduction of tourism taxes in the UK. During 2024, such taxes have been introduced in Manchester, Poole, Bournemouth and Brighton. Now, Edinburgh City Council has put forward draft proposals for a visitor levy scheme, which would charge visitors 5% of their accommodation costs per night for up to a week. But how useful are tourism taxes in practice? And what do local people make of them? To answer those questions, host Philippa Lamb is joined by Clare Beck, Chair of the ICAEW Scotland Board; internal auditor Jim Orr; Rhys Ap Gwilym, Senior Lecturer in Economics at Bangor University; and Suth Rathmell, Partner in Indirect Tax at MHA. Links ICAEW Scotland: https://www.icaew.com/groups-and-networks/local-groups-and-societies/scotland-dsThe Conversation: ‘Why you should expect to pay more tourist taxes – even though the evidence for them is unclear’: https://theconversation.com/why-you-should-expect-to-pay-more-tourist-taxes-even-though-the-evidence-for-them-is-unclear-229134Welsh Government: ‘Comparative analysis of the tax systems faced by the visitor economies in selected countries’: https://www.gov.wales/comparative-analysis-tax-systems-faced-visitor-economies-selected-countries HostPhilippa Lamb GuestsClare Beck, Chair, ICAEW Scotland Board Jim Orr, Internal AuditorRhys Ap Gwilym, Senior Lecturer, Economics, Bangor UniversitySue Rathmell, Partner, Indirect Tax, MHA ProducerNatalie Chisholm Episode first published: 25 September 2024Podcast recorded: 17 September 2024