'Our new tourist tax will allow us to reinvest into the North East' says mayor Kim McGuiness
The North East mayor Kim McGuinness has hailed new powers to place an overnight tourist tax on visitors to the region as “transformative”.
The new levy, announced as part of the chancellor Rachel Reeves’s budget, will enable regional mayors to generate additional income to further develop tourism, jobs, and infrastructure in their areas.
The overnight fee - which will be decided by regional mayors - will be applied to visitors’ overnight trips including stays at hotels, holiday lets, bed and breakfasts, and guesthouses.
Money raised can then be used to fund local projects that improve communities and enhance tourists’ experiences, that could potentially help attract more visitors – without needing approval from central government.
Ms McGuinness said: “Even a small amount levied on each overnight stay will transform the welcome we can give to people coming to North East England from all over the globe.
“This signals the start of a new era of events and festivals we will stage to bring a new focus to our unique world heritage sites at Hadrian’s Wall and Durham Cathedral, our stunning coastlines and the iconic Tyne bridges and gorge.
“This supports our ambition to double the size of the visitor economy creating thousands of new jobs in the next decade.”
Many cities around the world charge tourists a small fee when they visit, including New York, Paris and Milan.
The Government stressed that “research shows that reasonable fees have minimal impact on visitor numbers”.