Hotels want this tourism tax put to bed right now

Published on Thursday 15 May 2008 09:23

HOTELIERS across Edinburgh and Scotland will share my concern about Councillor Tom Buchanan's remarks in the Evening News (Death of tourist tax plan 'is premature', Evening News, May 13).

Cllr Buchanan surely has to recognise that if the city's main hoteliers are not prepared to pay a proposed tourism tax (or bed tax), the proposal is indeed dead in the water.

The Edinburgh Principal Hotels Association has surveyed its members and nearly two thirds of the hoteliers stated that they did not want to see the imposition of a tourist tax.

Cllr Buchanan claims that other organisations or companies should also have a say on a tourism tax, but it hardly seems fair that other wider stakeholders should have the ability to impose a tax on hotels – or is he suggesting that a tax could be levied on all tourist attractions as well? As the article stated that visitors would have an additional charge added to their bill, does this mean that local residents visiting tourist attractions would not be levied?

Edinburgh hoteliers have made it abundantly clear that they are not supportive of this tax on their business. The tourist industry in Scotland is trying hard to grow and develop, despite worldwide economic uncertainty. Such a tax would not only damage the hotel industry, but would also have an impact on the wider economy of the city. Edinburgh should drop these proposals now.

Bob Cotton, chief executive, British Hospitality Association, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London

Homes slowdown is not a surprise

I REFER to your article 'Scottish house prices fall for first time as slowdown bites' (May 13). This slowdown has been predicted for some time now and does not come as a shock. However, I do not believe that it is lack of properties on the market that is responsible for this.

In my professional view, estate agents, surveyors and mortgage advisers are beginning to look at the market in a more realistic light. Valuers have tightened up their valuations and banks are looking for sizeable deposits in order to reduce risk.

It is important that buyers have finance in place before looking at the market and under the current credit circumstances this process is taking more time. In addition it is also important that the purchaser has sold their own property.

However, it is worth noting that our branches in Fife are selling properties at an average price level which is between five and nine per cent higher than those sold during the same period last year. Whilst volume sales are down, this shows that the predicted price fall is not affecting every area of Scotland.

Matthew Gray, property services director, Pagan Osborne, Comiston Road, Morningside

Biofuels fools have ignored pitfalls

I THOUGHT we paid MPs and MSPs to look after our interests.

Look at the situation with biofuels where they have foolishly rushed in to prove their green credentials without considering the pitfalls.

Food inflation is now over 19 per cent. Experts say that the worldwide drive to produce biofuels is a major factor. The EU demanded that biofuel content of all petrol and diesel should be 2.5 per cent.

Farmers have switched from food production to biofuel crops.

With 6.4 billion people in the world we need all the food production possible, not some "green vision" that will lead to starvation for millions.

The increase in fuel prices is increasing the cost of animal feed and is adding to food inflation.

Since the Government "takes" 67p from every pound of fuel they could immediately help by reducing the VAT and fuel duty.

Clark Cross, Springfield Road, Linlithgow

School 'costs' were plucked from air

I COULDN'T agree more with the title of Stephen McIntyre's letter "Schools must make economic sense" (May 12). However it is difficult to agree with much of the content of his letter. For a start, the "independent consultant's report" he quotes could not possibly be independent when it was commissioned by the council who had already stated their intent to build PHS on Portobello Park.

The "costs" they provided for various options were plucked from the air with no supporting detail, and bear little scrutiny.

Mr McIntyre asserts that the supposed additional costs would relate to a "damaging decant". The "damage" could be limited and need not restrict the educational prospects of the pupils – it has been done at many other city schools.

Mr McIntyre goes on to talk about the capital receipt from the existing site – 15 million which could be used to build two primaries elsewhere. The council estimates that a new primary school costs 11m, and a new high school 38m, so these figures don't square. There is a danger with using benchmark figures that they can be misinterpreted and misquoted, and the only reliable figures would result from properly costed business cases, which have not been prepared.

We don't have a reliable estimate of how much could be raised from the sale of the existing site, especially now that it looks like St John's will remain on part of the site. If the council continues with the approach of selling off land for private housing, we will be in an increasingly difficult position in years to come in identifying space for the provision of facilities

One thing councillors didn't take into account in the decision to rebuild PHS on Portobello Park was the feelings of local residents, and they failed to acknowledge objections to the loss of this park.

When Mr McIntyre claims that "the wider community wants to use less than ten per cent" he is making two mistakes – the first is that only a very small single interest group in the community want this development, and not the "wider community", as he claims, and secondly he states that only ten per cent of the park will be used. Portobello Park is 4.5 hectares, and under the current council plans it would ALL disappear under concrete and school sports pitches, and none of it would remain as public park.

Alison Connelly, Duddingston Park, Edinburgh

Left cold by lack of hot dinners

THE Children and Families Department of Edinburgh City Council and all other officials and councillors who agreed to stop as from Monday, May 26, the provision of a midday hot dinner to nursery school children, supplying instead a cold packed sandwich lunch, should hang their heads in shame.

To save money by cutting hours and/or jobs of catering staff and closing kitchens, they are prepared to deprive the youngest and most vulnerable children of a daily hot meal. How could they even begin to think that way!

A child attending a nursery school must have the right to a midday nutritious hot meal. It is also a learning experience of table manners, use of cutlery and different foods.

A Delahoy, Silverknowes Crescent, Edinburgh