§ 12. Mr. WatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what representations he has received regarding a tourism tax; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. SproatI have received representations on this subject, expressing a number of different viewpoints, from hon. Members, from local authorities and from tourism trade organisations and individual operators.
§ Mr. WatersonI am grateful to my hon. Friend for that answer. Does he agree, however, that a tourism tax would be unfair, unworkable and damaging to tourism? All those factors would no doubt qualify it for inclusion in the election manifestos of the Opposition parties.
§ Mr. SproatProbably.
§ Mr. Tony BanksBefore rejecting the whole concept of the tourism tax, will the Minister look at examples abroad and see how they work? It seems that, as a marginal tax, the tourism tax will hardly act as a disincentive to tourists.
§ Mr. SproatNo, I do not agree. We are already finding some difficulty in retaining the competitive edge of British tourism; I do not wish to add anything more to dull that competitive edge, and a tax might well do that.