Consultation on the tourist tax.
http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/news/article/2565/council_opens_citywide_tvl_consultation
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » General Edinburgh
"Holiday Flats Edinburgh's Ruin"
(541 posts)-
Posted 6 years ago #
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Submitted, warning 31 questions. Is there opposition? They do it elsewhere without fuss? Looks like they will set up a quango of stakeholders ( hoteliers etc) I was against this. Hopefully if they do it they get the boardwalk cafe involved. The owner there has initials ET and now whenever I have an idea or read about a development I think Phone Home what would ET say about this?
Posted 6 years ago # -
Didn't take long to fill in.
I'm also against the hoteliers/tourist industry having a say in how it's spent, and against it being used to fund festivals and further promote Edinburgh as a destination. Instead suggested it should be used to alleviate the impact of large numbers of visitors, improve the streetscape, wider pavements, cleanliness, urban consolidation centre for deliveries etc... Joined up thinking!
Posted 6 years ago # -
done!
Posted 6 years ago # -
Done, and highlighting similar concerns to PS ie don't just use the money raised to bring in yet more tourists!
I was a bit surprised that the options put forward were either a flat rate or a % of the room cost. Most places I know of in Europe seem to charge per occupier above a certain age, and use either a completely flat rate* or a stepped scale based on the star rating of the accommodation. Paris certainly uses a stepped rate: https://en.parisinfo.com/practical-paris/money/tourist-tax. I'd be surprised if the framework shown there couldn't adopted more or less as it stands for Edinburgh - it even encompasses "furnished rentals" which would seem to include AirB'n'B.
The questionnaire did later imply that a stepped scale might also be contemplated, but I made sure to mention it explicitly in my comments.
I recall being charged €1.50 each per night for two nights in a 3-star hotel on the Costa Amalfitana. The proprietor was very apologetic when he pointed it out on the bill but honestly, in the overall scheme of things it was less than the cost of one beer from their rooftop poolside bar!
* From what I can see in this table, in Italy it's only Bologna that charges a completely flat rate.
Posted 6 years ago # -
filled in and noted that it'll be near impossible to enforce on a per room booked basis for most. Only benefit to this is that it's the biggest and most compliant hotels that'll be paying the lions share of this anyway as they are more rigorously audited.
Posted 6 years ago # -
1 listing in airbnb for every 54 residents in Edinburgh, according to research by a Green activist. . 4x higher than London or Paris. I do find that a bit unlikely though I'd guess it's high and that Edinburgh has been in the habit of short-term lettings for the Festival for decades.
Posted 6 years ago # -
Done, I added comments requesting that visitors are provided free public transport in return for the TVL.
I also suggested that the income be used to encourage accommodation providers to reduce their energy usage.
Posted 6 years ago # -
I do remember some attempts a few years back to turn St Andrew's Day into another event.
It's very badly timed in the run up for Christmas and shortly after Hallowe'en and Guy Fawkes. Wales, Ireland, England have their saints' days in the spring. Also there's a popular celebration of Scottish culture in Burns night. Doubt if they can make St Andrew's a thing.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@rosie, I recall north Lanarkshire council gave their employees an extra day's holiday for it a few years back. They do like their holidays in north Lanarkshire.
Posted 5 years ago # -
I'm not exactly sure if "take a handful of old bones as far away as you can to the ends of the earth [1] for safekeeping", of someone who otherwise had absolutely no connection with the country, is a particularly good reason for choosing a national day.
([1] Scotland, apparently)
And with over half of Scots identifying as non-religious, it's perhaps even less appropriate for a modern and inclusive country. By all means note it in the calendar for historical reasons, but it's not really "A Thing".
I'm completely in agreement that a good national day (and holiday) is best placed at a time of year when the weather gods are more benevolent, so in that light, Refounding of the Parliament Day would seem as good and perhaps appropriate choice as any at the current time?
Posted 5 years ago # -
@gembo Someone was telling me that some places get a holiday for it. Rubbish time of year for a holiday.
@davecykl I'd have thought in its Presbyterian history saints' days holidays would not have found favour in Scotland anyway. Christmas and Easter were pretty much abolished, weren't they? and they come at a natural, "pagan" times of celebration, being at the winter solstice and the spring respectively.
I think Burns night is sufficient for a bit of national celebration. It's genuinely popular and has good food, drink and poetry and songs. Possibly need the day after off as a recovery day... I'd vastly prefer that to a political national festival like Refounding of Parliament.
I remember being in Croatia and they were having an Independence type of day. Hostess asked me when we celebrated ours. Err?
Do the Irish celebrate their independence day? (quick google tells me they don't). I imagine Paddy's Day is a sufficient celebration of Irishness - and it's one that has travelled round the diaspora. That's more attractive than a politically inspired national holiday.
Posted 5 years ago # -
“
“None of us want to live in a theme park, but with a better conversation and smarter thinking we can decide on the right balance, an Edinburgh that is a world-class tourism destination and proud of it – a vibrant, modern city that conserves and celebrates its heritage. That looks forward, but understands where it’s come from. That invests in itself, but understands why others come and welcomes them.
“
Posted 5 years ago # -
Someone was lamenting that Roseburn Maltings, the blocks of apartments in Roseburn, are getting over-run with Airbnb. That's half an hour walk from the city centre, and the flats are modern, not picturesque. There are good transport links. That's the tourist rash spreading.
Posted 5 years ago # -
“
The charity’s director, Adam Wilkinson, has called on Mr Robertson to make a “public retraction” after his speech to industry leaders at the Balmoral Hotel. In his speech, Mr Robertson, who is also director of communications at Edinburgh Airport, accused critics of wanting the city “preserved in aspic” and suggested the “Disneyfication” of Edinburgh would not be a bad thing.
“
Posted 5 years ago # -
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Edinburgh as a theme-park is well established.
It is nominally ‘Scottish’ but in highly contrived way. It is ‘old’. It is a ‘party’ city. But this comes at a price.
The commodification of public space and the endless profiteering far outweighs any culture experience.
This can only be achieved by displacement and this has happened rapidly though the massive growth of Air BnB and temporary accommodation and planning permission for hotels.
This process happens without scrutiny and without consultation.
---
https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/2018/12/18/the-disneyfication-of-edinburgh/
Posted 5 years ago # -
“It is nominally ‘Scottish’ but in highly contrived way.”
Eh?
Posted 5 years ago # -
Bagpipes on every corner
Posted 5 years ago # -
Eh?
Eh1?
“It is nominally ‘Scottish’ but in highly contrived way.”
Edinburgh is part of Scotland, in some degree, as NY part of USA.
“The commodification of public space and the endless profiteering far outweighs any culture experience.”
Well...
Spending money has clearly become a ‘cultural experience’ (not necessarily the same as a culture experience).
“This process happens without scrutiny and without consultation.”
I’m not sure that is strictly true. Edinburgh has long had policies to encourage visitors - EIF then the Fringe and onwards. Now, perhaps, it has gone too far. The facilitation, courtesy of AirBnB’ - which has become something that may not have originally been intended, seems hard to control with existing legislation.
Adequate rules seem to be hard to find.
Posted 5 years ago # -
“It is nominally ‘Scottish’ but in highly contrived way.”
'Twas ever thus. See the nineteenth century Scottish Baronial Revival style. In fact, see pretty much any architectural style.
Posted 5 years ago # -
If you want fewer tourists, airports and motorists you have to do something that is inegalitarian and politically impossible.
Tourism flourishes because of cheap flights. Flights are highly damaging to the environment.
Scottish airports have pushed for a £300 million tax cut in at least 14 meetings with ministers and MSPs. - The Scottish Government said that cutting the tax was compatible with combating climate change.
https://theferret.scot/scottish-airports-lobbying-tax-cut/
Everyone loves cheap flights except those who live in the city that are overwhelmed with tourists transported by Ryanair.
The solution – tax air fuel and make flights expensive so tourism is only for the rich, as it used to be.
Everyone hates mass tourism and then goes off to become a mass tourist.
Everyone hates airbnbs in their city but will use an Airbnb in another city as it’s cheap and it’s much nicer to rent a small apartment than pay for a hotel.
Crack down on Airbnb and make your accommodation expensive so tourism is only for the rich as it used to be.
Ditto with cars. If cars were forbidden to park on public streets only the wealthy with driveways and garages would own them. Car ownership by an elite is not the problem that driving by the masses is. The rich owning helicopters as they do in some places is not a problem. If half the population owned one, they would be.
But that would be politically impossible. No-one could express such inegalitarian views and carry out the policies involved without a furious reaction.
In short, we’re all doomed.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@rosie. Yes. Good example is Congestion Charge. Imposed in London, contributing to Red Ken being ousted the second time. Yet successor did not rescind. Cycling gaining modal share.
Meanwhile Edinburgh went for referendum due to weak political masters and we lost the visionary David Begg without any gain.With houses being built in every field out this way and every driver taking their own car into town, as the single occupant, there can only be more gridlock.
This gridlock does not seem to shake resolve to drive single occupant vehicles into Edinburgh.? This is seen as every driver's right when in fact it is actually a luxury that should be taxed as such.
A congestion charge is the answer, with a reduction if car has multiple passengers?
Posted 5 years ago # -
With houses being built in every field out this way
I came over all AE Houseman looking south from Craigmillar Hill (Creag Maol Ard for the Gaels among us) on Boxing Day. What I had imagined to be green belt is sprouting executive homes all cheek-by-jowl.
Not a transit system in sight. Same for the cheek by jowl executive homes on the old waterworks at Alnwick Hill. No shops, Liberton Inn turned into luxury flats. We're asking for trouble I tells you.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Shame about liberton inn. I thought it was maybe staying as pub?
Monte is to open as pizzeria pub shortly
Engine shed has massive tacked on extension going in
Nomad's Tent has the bunting out all up the street as has its sale on
Posted 5 years ago # -
@gembo - Yes, the congestion charge was a missed opportunity.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Not too many tourists, just the wrong sort – why “slow adventure” might ease the pressure on Scotland
The concentration on roads and key sites has been noted, however the number of visitors aren’t necessarily always higher. It seems, therefore, that people who visit the destinations where the honeypot sites are located are following the same patterns.
People seem to be going to the same sites, spending a short amount of time in a place, potentially spending little money locally because they are trying to visit so many places in one holiday or trip. Ultimately, more and more people are behaving in the same way, quite often because of the power of social media and successful marketing campaigns
The solution touted of slow adventure seems to be the sort of thing people have gone to the hills for since leisure time became available.
Posted 5 years ago #
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