Meeting of the Parliament 19 February 2026 [Draft]
I agree with that, but I will leave it to members to decide whether that is in a good way or a bad way.
Above all, it is worth remembering a couple of fundamental points. First, when the original bill was going through Parliament, a lot of members highlighted the fact that a tourist levy happens in other countries. We have to remember that VAT will be charged on top of the levy. In many of those other jurisdictions, either VAT has been reduced or no VAT is charged on accommodation. We need to remember the context.
Likewise, Murdo Fraser, who is not in the chamber right now, was right to reflect that we are a relatively high-cost destination. Without wishing to get into too much economic theory, I would also ask whether the visitor accommodation sector in this country is a price setter or a price taker.
We kid ourselves that people will come here if we charge whatever we like. There will be a point at the margins where a particular tourist or visitor will choose not to come here and to go somewhere else instead, and we need to bear that in mind.
We should reflect on the fact that the levy reflects a more fundamental dysfunction in that economic growth and success in an area does not feed through to local councils.
I approve of the variation powers—it is important that the Government can be flexible. I think that the point about third-party charging is right, and a flat fee will definitely be easier to levy and collect.
I also want to reflect on a couple of other points. Alasdair Allan is absolutely right to raise the prevalence of cruise ships and camper vans, which are a big issue for many parts of the country. However, above all else, I agree with a great deal of what Willie Rennie said, which needs to be heeded. We cannot have people trying to add lots of bells and whistles to this process. Let us do a serious job and pass the bit of legislation that we are being asked to.
Finally, I would like to highlight that we need to look very carefully at the per-person, per-night approach, because it might well fall foul of the efficiency and practicality reasons for supporting the bill, and I ask whether that might not add its own complexity to passing the legislation.