'Cash grab' new tourist tax in popular city sparks cancellations just hours after coming into force

A new tourist tax in Edinburgh has sparked fury and cancellations just hours after coming into force.

The Scottish capital is the first city in the country to introduce a visitor levy, which has previously been blasted as a "cash grab".

From today, tourists staying overnight in hotels, bed and breakfasts and self-catering accommodation will be charged an additional five per cent on top of their original booking costs - a measure which the city hopes will raise £50million per year.

The city, home to the internationally renowned Edinburgh festival, joins other popular European tourist hotspots such as Amsterdam, Paris, and Rome by introducing the tax.

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It is being introduced just before the festival season kicks off in August, which brings 3.5 million event attendances to the city.

Opponents fear the tax could dissuade potential visitors - with the Scottish Ballet already cancelling five performances in the city as a result of the levy.

The Glasgow-based company was scheduled to run the show from December 11 to December 31, but said the run will now end on Christmas Eve, with the extra cost of accommodating the cast and crew making the full run "impossible".

The City of Edinburgh estimates between £45million and £50million would be scraped from tourists' wallets thanks to the tax by the 2028/29 financial year.

Council leader Jane Meagher said the levy could bring "huge benefits".

"It inevitably costs us more to maintain the city to the high standards needed and it didn't seem fair that residents had to pay for that, so it seems fair that visitors should contribute," she said.

Some £5million will be set aside to build 472 homes, alongside money for public home improvements.

Another £1million from the council's profits would be used to launch a new city centre policing unit dedicated to supporting Edinburgh's events.

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And a £5million fund will be established for the restoration of Leith Theatre, while £3million will be given to a long-running project to turn the Old Royal High School into a national music centre.

Despite the investment being used to fund arts programmes, the Scottish Ballet and National Theatre of Scotland have both said the levy should be revised.

The Scottish Ballet is now calling for an exemption or relief mechanism for Scotland's National Performance Companies - a group of five organisations which also includes the National Theatre of Scotland, Scottish Opera, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

Steven Roth, executive director of Scottish Ballet, said: “The economics of touring to Edinburgh are fast becoming unsustainable. We will keep finding ways to make it work because we believe in this city.

"But a visitor economy that becomes too expensive for both the artists who animate it and the audiences who come to see them risks undermining the very thing that makes Edinburgh worth visiting."

Christopher Hampson, the artistic director of Scottish Ballet, said: "Edinburgh is known around the world as a city where the arts are alive in a way that is genuinely rare. That reputation was built by the companies and performers who have committed to this city year after year. We remain committed to Edinburgh, but that commitment needs to be a two-way street."

The National Theatre of Scotland suggested an exemption should be made for "all Scotland-based performing artists and theatre companies".

A spokesman for the theatre said: "These artists and organisations are fulfilling a specific remit; enhancing the cultural life of its residents as well as providing an exciting offer to its visitors."

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