NICOLA Sturgeon has announced a consultation will be held into a tourist tax, the Scottish Tourism Alliance has said.
The First Minister is said to have made the announcement during a speech at the Scottish Tourism Alliance (STA) annual conference in Edinburgh.
The STA tweeted that the First Minister had announced an "objective consultation, as STA requested, into a tourism tax".
The move comes as the Scottish Government's opposition to tourism tax appears to be softening.
Current government policy does not support a tax, at odds with the SNP leader of Edinburgh City Council Adam McVey, who has been at the head of plans to make tourists pay to boost public services.
His administration has put forward proposals for £2-a-night tourist tax in Edinburgh, which is projected to raise around £11 million a year.
Facing criticism from Labour on her government's tourist tax opposition, Sturgeon said previously the issue would be under consideration ahead of the budget.
She said the government would listen to voices from all sides of the debate on the issue, including criticism from parts of the tourism industry, before making a decision.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel