A hotelier believes a tourist tax would be “very difficult to implement” in Dumfries and Galloway.
A consultation is under way on the potential introduction of an extra fee for people who stay overnight at accommodation ranging from hotels to self-catering cottages.
Should the proposed bill become law, local authorities will be able to set rates – based on a percentage of the cost for staying – in their area.
But Chris Walker from The Selkirk Arms doesn’t think that would work here.
Mr Walker, a board member for the South of Scotland Destination Alliance, said: “As I understand it if you go to some large capital or tourist cities, they have a charge per night tourist tax and that goes back into the city council for infrastructure maintenance.
“I think it’s going to be difficult for Dumfries and Galloway Council to put a tourist tax on properties and areas with such a rural location.
“I’m not especially worried about it – let’s wait and see how the consultation roles out.
“For Dumfries and Galloway it would have to be something clearly thought out by the council that has a direct input or works directly for tourism and I think it would be very difficult to try to implement.
“I get it for cities, it’s going to be very difficult for rural areas.”
The Scottish Parliament’s local government, housing and planning committee launched a public consultation on the Visitor Levy (Scotland) Bill on Monday, which will run until September 1.
After the consultation, the committee will hear from stakeholders and then produce a report. After that, MSPs will discuss whether the bill should proceed.
Mr Walker added: “The track record of the SNP and Greens on any form of consultation and then implementation is pretty poor.
“A lot of people wasted a lot of time and energy with the deposit return scheme on preparing for that just to find at the 11th hour it was being kicked into the long grass and won’t be happening until we have a national policy in place.
“I think that’s how we feel about this now. Let’s wait and see what comes out of the consultation before we make too many noises and challenges.”
Committee convener, Ariane Burgess MSP, said: “Tourism is one of Scotland’s leading growth industries, contributing more than £4 billion to our economy each year, so ensuring these proposals work for those connected to the industry is essential.
“The bill provides a framework for local authorities to decide how money raised should be spent within local communities, how flexible they can be with where and when the levy would apply and whether certain exemptions should apply, all of which we want to gather detailed views on from urban, rural and island communities across Scotland.”
