Cllr Spencer Gardner is Deputy Leader of the Conservative group on Portsmouth City Council serving for the Drayton & Farlington Ward.
When metro mayors were first proposed, we were promised stronger local leadership, better transport, economic growth and decisions made closer to the communities affected by them. There was little mention that they would also become vehicles for new forms of taxation.
Yet that is precisely the direction of travel. The Government’s plans to allow metro mayors to introduce visitor levies on overnight accommodation represent a significant shift in the relationship between regional government and taxpayers.
Supporters of the proposal argue that a tourist tax is both modest and commonplace. After all, many cities across Europe already charge visitors for overnight stays. If tourists enjoy local attractions, infrastructure and public services, why should they not make a contribution towards them? But Conservatives should focus on the bigger question. What exactly is devolution for?
For many of us, the answer has always been straightforward. Devolution should mean better local decision-making, more accountability and stronger economic growth. It should mean empowering local leaders to improve public services and remove barriers to prosperity. It should not simply mean giving politicians new ways to raise revenue.
Nor is the visitor levy emerging in isolation. We have already seen growing debate around council tax rebanding and proposals for surcharges on higher-value properties. Individually, each measure can be defended on its own merits. Collectively, however, they point towards a broader trend: the search for new ways to increase the tax take without an equally open debate about higher taxation.
Before boarding this particular flight, Conservatives should consider where it ultimately ends. At first glance, a few pounds added to a hotel bill may appear insignificant. Yet history teaches us that taxation rarely travels in only one direction. New taxes are introduced as modest measures. Over time, they become normalised, expanded and increased. Taxes have a habit of behaving rather like flight delays: they are rarely as brief as promised and often last far longer than expected. That should concern Conservatives who have long championed low taxes as a driver of economic growth.
Britain is already experiencing one of the highest tax burdens in modern memory. Families pay income tax, National Insurance, VAT, fuel duty and council tax. Businesses contend with corporation tax, business rates and employment costs. Against that backdrop, the answer from government too often appears remarkably familiar: if there is a funding gap, create another levy.
The visitor levy is therefore best understood not as an isolated proposal but as part of a wider trend. Increasingly, policymakers reach for new levies, surcharges and revaluations whenever additional revenue is required. The common thread is a growing assumption that when government needs more money, taxpayers simply need another bill.
It also raises important questions about the evolution of mayoral government. Metro mayors such as Andy Burnham were presented as civic champions whose job was to put their regions on the map, attract visitors, investment and opportunity, and improve public services. Yet there is a growing risk that the success of mayoral government comes to be measured less by economic growth and more by its ability to generate additional revenue.
The success of a mayor should be measured by their ability to create jobs, attract businesses, encourage investment and grow their local economy. It should not be measured by how many new charges they can place on residents, visitors or employers.
The tourist tax may be small. The principle behind it is not. If politicians believe taxes must rise, they should make that argument honestly. They should explain who will pay, how much they will pay and why additional revenue is necessary. What should concern Conservatives is the increasingly creative language that accompanies new taxes.
We are told about levies, supplements, contributions and modest charges. Yet if government requires people to pay money for an activity that was previously untaxed, then despite the slick branding, the press releases and the social media spin, the public knows exactly what to call it: a tax.
For many families, the cost of everyday life already feels expensive enough without politicians adding another charge to the bill. Businesses face growing costs and economic growth remains frustratingly elusive. The last thing Britain needs is another levy lurking in the small print of the booking confirmation.
Devolution was supposed to be an opportunity for local growth, local leadership and local accountability. It was not supposed to be a passport to higher taxation.
The tourist tax may be sold as little more than the price of a postcard. But it represents something much bigger: the normalisation of new local taxes under the banner of devolution. That should not be the destination for Conservatives. Devolution was supposed to bring power closer to people, not taxes.
Conservatives should think carefully before checking in as once a tax arrives, it rarely checks out.
Cllr Spencer Gardner is Deputy Leader of the Conservative group on Portsmouth City Council serving for the Drayton & Farlington Ward.
When metro mayors were first proposed, we were promised stronger local leadership, better transport, economic growth and decisions made closer to the communities affected by them. There was little mention that they would also become vehicles for new forms of taxation.
Yet that is precisely the direction of travel. The Government’s plans to allow metro mayors to introduce visitor levies on overnight accommodation represent a significant shift in the relationship between regional government and taxpayers.
Supporters of the proposal argue that a tourist tax is both modest and commonplace. After all, many cities across Europe already charge visitors for overnight stays. If tourists enjoy local attractions, infrastructure and public services, why should they not make a contribution towards them? But Conservatives should focus on the bigger question. What exactly is devolution for?
For many of us, the answer has always been straightforward. Devolution should mean better local decision-making, more accountability and stronger economic growth. It should mean empowering local leaders to improve public services and remove barriers to prosperity. It should not simply mean giving politicians new ways to raise revenue.
Nor is the visitor levy emerging in isolation. We have already seen growing debate around council tax rebanding and proposals for surcharges on higher-value properties. Individually, each measure can be defended on its own merits. Collectively, however, they point towards a broader trend: the search for new ways to increase the tax take without an equally open debate about higher taxation.
Before boarding this particular flight, Conservatives should consider where it ultimately ends. At first glance, a few pounds added to a hotel bill may appear insignificant. Yet history teaches us that taxation rarely travels in only one direction. New taxes are introduced as modest measures. Over time, they become normalised, expanded and increased. Taxes have a habit of behaving rather like flight delays: they are rarely as brief as promised and often last far longer than expected. That should concern Conservatives who have long championed low taxes as a driver of economic growth.
Britain is already experiencing one of the highest tax burdens in modern memory. Families pay income tax, National Insurance, VAT, fuel duty and council tax. Businesses contend with corporation tax, business rates and employment costs. Against that backdrop, the answer from government too often appears remarkably familiar: if there is a funding gap, create another levy.
The visitor levy is therefore best understood not as an isolated proposal but as part of a wider trend. Increasingly, policymakers reach for new levies, surcharges and revaluations whenever additional revenue is required. The common thread is a growing assumption that when government needs more money, taxpayers simply need another bill.
It also raises important questions about the evolution of mayoral government. Metro mayors such as Andy Burnham were presented as civic champions whose job was to put their regions on the map, attract visitors, investment and opportunity, and improve public services. Yet there is a growing risk that the success of mayoral government comes to be measured less by economic growth and more by its ability to generate additional revenue.
The success of a mayor should be measured by their ability to create jobs, attract businesses, encourage investment and grow their local economy. It should not be measured by how many new charges they can place on residents, visitors or employers.
The tourist tax may be small. The principle behind it is not. If politicians believe taxes must rise, they should make that argument honestly. They should explain who will pay, how much they will pay and why additional revenue is necessary. What should concern Conservatives is the increasingly creative language that accompanies new taxes.
We are told about levies, supplements, contributions and modest charges. Yet if government requires people to pay money for an activity that was previously untaxed, then despite the slick branding, the press releases and the social media spin, the public knows exactly what to call it: a tax.
For many families, the cost of everyday life already feels expensive enough without politicians adding another charge to the bill. Businesses face growing costs and economic growth remains frustratingly elusive. The last thing Britain needs is another levy lurking in the small print of the booking confirmation.
Devolution was supposed to be an opportunity for local growth, local leadership and local accountability. It was not supposed to be a passport to higher taxation.
The tourist tax may be sold as little more than the price of a postcard. But it represents something much bigger: the normalisation of new local taxes under the banner of devolution. That should not be the destination for Conservatives. Devolution was supposed to bring power closer to people, not taxes.
Conservatives should think carefully before checking in as once a tax arrives, it rarely checks out.