Wales tourism tax timeline as proposals for changes get voted on
Senedd members have been debating amendments to the Wales tourism tax - with a number of proposals shot down. If the bill completes its passage through the Welsh Parliament, £1.30 a person before VAT could be charged on overnight stays in hotels, B&Bs and self-catering accommodation.
A lower rate of 80p would apply to hostels and campsites. The 22 Welsh councils would be given the powers to decide whether to introduce a local levy from 2027 at the earliest.
The Welsh Tories wanted a 10-night cap on the levy as well as exemptions for educational trips, charities, members of the armed forces and veterans.
They also wanted to exempt yachts and other boats from plans for a £1.30 a night visitor levy in the future. All these were voted down by members. A Plaid Cymru amendment to exempt all under 16s was also defeated.
But Senedd members were able to agree other amendments, including an exemption for under 18s from the lower rate. Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now
Sam Rowlands, the Tory shadow finance secretary, introduced an amendment to the tourism tax bill to remove powers for ministers to extend the levy to berths and moorings in future. He argued extending the bill to marinas would be unnecessarily complicated and burdensome, adding that boating is a leisure and sporting activity.
He said: 'To be clear, those that provide berths and moorings are not providing visitor accommodation in any real sense. By their nature, those vessels… move around.'
Mr Rowlands told Senedd members: 'It's quite clear that boaters have a minimal… impact on local services because they are self-contained within the berth or mooring area.'
But Senedd members voted 3-1 against the Conservative's proposal as the finance committee considered nearly 160 amendments to the bill.
Mike Hedges, who represents Swansea East, said: 'As I tell people quite regularly, we've got a marina there and I can tell you now – when people come in by boat into that marina, they don't stay in the marina… they go into the city centre and they use the services there.'
Mr Hedges said: 'The council taxpayer of Swansea is covering those costs,' as he argued marinas should have been included in the bill from the outset.
His Labour colleague Mark Drakeford agreed: 'It is right that [for] a yacht arriving at Swansea or Cardiff marina… the yacht owner should pay the levy just as somebody staying in a nearby hotel or the Cardiff council campsite in Pontcanna will be.'
The first minister-turned-finance secretary said: 'I can see no case in principle why those visiting in boats and yachts should find themselves not captured by the levy.'
Prof Drakeford explained: 'The bill, as the [Welsh] Government presents it, doesn't have a worked-up scheme for berths and moorings as Mike Hedges would have wished. But the complexity of it is real and was beyond our ability to resolve all that complexity in the bill itself. So, what the bill provides is a power to return to this issue in future when some of those practical challenges can have been more fully discussed.'
Mr Rowlands responded: 'It does feel like an afterthought… for me, without the proper revision and understanding of this in the first instance, it shouldn't be in here at all.'
Prof Drakeford described the Welsh Government's approach as more progressive and targeted, removing a large proportion of educational stays from the levy. He said: 'If you're going to narrow the [tax] base, the only way to compensate in terms of revenue... is by raising the levy charge on those who remain within the scope.'
Members voted to raise the lower and higher rates by 5p to 80p and £1.30 respectively. The bill now moves to the third step: consideration of amendments by the whole Senedd: before a crunch vote on the final version at stage four. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
Find out what's happening near you
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
13 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
UK holiday park reveals major £8.1million makeover plans with new holiday cabins and campsite
Plus, the same company plans to open a new holiday park elsewhere in the UK CAMP OUT UK holiday park reveals major £8.1million makeover plans with new holiday cabins and campsite Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A HOLIDAY park has revealed major plans for an £8.1million makeover with new cabins in Wales. Forest Holidays is hoping to gain permission to replace 85 caravans and camping pitches at its site in Beddgelert, in Snowdonia National Park. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 A Welsh holiday park is planning a £8.1million makeover Credit: Eryri National Park 3 The site plans to add 22 year-round cabins to its park based in Beddgelert in Snowdonia National Park Credit: Getty The site plans to add 22 year-round, luxury cabins to its existing 16 cabin development and 85 additional pitches for both touring caravans and camping. In addition, Forest Holidays wants to create a new reception and cafe building. Currently, the site has 25 touring caravan pitches and 85 camping pitches. The proposals are part of a wider plan in collaboration with the Roberts Group - the owners of Cae Du and Cae Canol campsite, also in Beddgelert. Under a separate application, there will be more touring and camping pitches at Cae Du and Cae Canol so the village doesn't lose capacity. Public toilets and better path access for guests are also part of the plans. Back in 2017, the site gained planning consent for 16 cabins and up to 85 touring caravan pitches and camping pitches. Forest Holidays has 13 sites across the UK in woodlands owned by Forestry England, Forestry and Land Scotland, and Natural Resources Wales. The Beddgelert site is the smallest of the Forest Holidays locations and is set in a riverside wooded area. Each cabin currently has a hot tub and guests can enjoy access to the new Elvis Owl Nature Trail - which is ideal for kids as it includes activities to immerse them in nature. This holiday park has Maldives-like overwater bungalows Families can also hire bikes from the site, to explore the local area on wheels. Alternatively, guests can get some R&R with a spa treatment. Prices to stay at the holiday park vary, but can be found from £895 for a week, for a family of four. Beddgelert itself is a picturesque stone-built village, which is the ideal base for exploring Snowdonia National Park. From the village, travellers can head onto the Lôn Gwyrfai path which can be used by walkers, cyclists and horse riders. The route stretches over four miles to the village of Rhyd Ddu - which is then a good starting point to hike to the summit of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon). According to Forest Holidays, since opening in 2018 demand for the 16 cabins at Beddgelert has been high throughout the year. The site also expects annual occupancy levels of the cabins to be 96 per cent, with guests expected to spend £650,000 per annum in the local area as well. Forest Holidays plans £23million woodland park with lodges, treehouses and play zones A NEW £23million woodland holiday park with lodges, treehouses and play zones is set to open in the UK. Forest Holidays, which submitted the plans for the project, hopes to build 75 timber holiday cabins on 140 acres in a Derbyshire woodland at Farley Moor. If approved, the holiday park would feature a shop, cafe, outdoor play area and 249 parking spaces. The whopping £23million project will be able to host 185 people with cabin sizes varying from one to five beds along with treehouse rooms. Forest Holidays plans to suspend all cabins above the ground on steel pillars to protect the forest floor. The cabins would be a flat-pack design reducing the need for heavy construction equipment. Center Parcs' boss also recently revealed what to expect from its brand new holiday park in the UK. Plus, the lesser-known UK holiday park named the best in the country – with unique all-inclusive stays and free booze.
Daily Mirror
14 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Nigel Farage's 'fantasy' plan to cut crime as huge questions remain
Nigel Farage has been accused of peddling a string of 'ill-thought through slogans' after making big promises to tackle crime, with questions over his sums and the impact on prisons Nigel Farage has yet again been accused of peddling "fantasy" plans based on dodgy sums - this time on tackling crime. The Reform leader resorted to "amateur hour" headline-grabbing measures, including sending thousands of prisoners overseas to serve lenghty sentences, critics said. He named El Salavador as an example - but then admitted he hadn't discussed it with the central American nation. Mr Farage claimed it would cost £17.4billion to halve crime in five years, a sum he insisted could be raised without raising tax - but was later told his estimate was "billions out". His plans appeared to unravel after he said drug traffickers would face mandatory life imprisonment, as would people with three convictions for serious crimes. He also said people found in possession of a knife would not be eligible for suspended sentences. Despite this his proposals would create just 30,000 new prison spaces. Last year there were nearly 50,000 crimes reported to police involving a knife in England and Wales. The operating capacity of prisons was 89,600 in June this year. Sex offenders and those convicted of violent crimes would not qualify for early release, Mr Farage said. The Reform leader said the Army would be ordered to help build five "Nightingale" prisons - modelled on the hospitals fast-tracked during the Covid crisis. Inmates from overseas would be sent back to their homelands, he claimed. But it is unclear what would happen if countries refuse to take them back, with Mr Farage suggesting the UK would use its ecomonic heft to punish those who say no. The previous Tory government suggested sending prisoners to overseas jails - but experts questioned whether this would actually work. The populist Reform boss also claimed he would abolish a shoplifters' "charter" - even though he and his party voted against the Government's Crime and Policing Bill which does just that. Tory law changes mean thefts from shops worth under £200 are less likely to result in prosecution - sending cases sprialling. Labour Party chairwoman Ellie Reeves said: ' Nigel Farage repeatedly tried to block tough measures to make our streets safer. Reform is more interested in headline-chasing than serious policy-making in the interests of the British people. Farage's Reform MPs voted against the Labour Government's landmark Crime and Policing Bill which tackles antisocial behaviour, shoplifting, violence against women and girls, knife crime, and child abuse. The public deserves better than ill-thought through slogans and unfunded policy commitments. 'Unlike Reform, this Labour government is backing up its words with action." And Tory shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: "Farage's sums don't add Reform's crime plan suggests prison places can be provided at £25,000, when the real cost is £40,000. This isn't a manifesto - it's a fantasy, written on the back of a fag packet. "Farage's numbers are billions out. You don't halve crime with wishful thinking. You do it with a real plan, real costs, and real leadership. Britain needs serious leadership, not amateur hour." Mr Farage claimed his plans would see 12,400 new prison places on Ministry of Defence (MOD) land within 18 months of a new Government. He said there would be an additional 10,400 created by transferring serious offenders overseas. He named El Salvador, but then admitted that he had not tested the water to see if its government would be open to such a deal with the UK. It is also unknown how much this would cost, but Reform documents suggest £1.25billion would be set aside over five years. He also said it is "fair, right and proper" that British criminals are taken back in return. Mr Farage said: "Reform will be the toughest party on law and order and on crime that this country has ever seen. "We will aim to cut crime by half in the first five years of Reform government. We will take back control of our streets. We will take back control of our courts, of our prisons. If you're a criminal, I am putting you on notice today that from 2029 or whenever that may be, either you obey the law or you will face very serious justice," Following Tory proposals to send prisoners overseas last year, the Prison Reform Trust responded: "Examples of where similar policies have been implemented by other countries to relieve problems of overcrowded and limited capacity have shown mixed results. "In the past decade, both Norway and Belgium have rented prison places in the Netherlands to handle problems of overcrowding and limited capacity. Ultimately, neither Norway nor Belgium extended their contracts with the Netherlands. "Both schemes were heavily criticised by national and international detention monitoring bodies." And it said: "In the case of Belgium, the arrangement did not reduce overcrowding – which continued to get worse."
The Guardian
14 minutes ago
- The Guardian
A new parliament, but is it new politics?
Labor's signature Hecs debt relief will be introduced to parliament this week. Here's what it means for you
