Liverpool hospitality leaders are set to vote on whether to adopt a proposed £2 a night charge on visitors to the city. Administered and managed by Liverpool’s Accommodation BID, the levy could be in place by June, with its initial term lasting until 2027. The ballot will open on Friday, 27 March, with the results announced on Thursday, 24 April.
Annie Brown, general manager at the Municipal Spa Hotel in Liverpool, worked on the Manchester visitor levy as chair of Manchester Accommodation BID. She said: “All UK cities need additional support as funding has changed. When we look at other cities, there has been concern about a visitor levy detracting from investment, but in reality, that hasn’t happened. It’s a small gesture for tourists to pay, and it really helps the city to promote itself. In Manchester we learnt how successful it is to work collaboratively and to work with one aim.”
Bill Addy, chief executive of the Liverpool BID Company, added: “Major exhibitions and events, like The Terracotta Warriors, can attract a huge audience, generating income both for the visitor economy, the tourism industry and hospitality. What we would love, as both a city and a private sector, is to be able to support so that we can hold events like this much more regularly. The investment we are proposing could really turbo-charge the city’s economy.”
Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has said he wants to see the city centre’s optional city visitor charge replaced by a compulsory fee, but UKHospitality warned any “tourist tax introduced there would harm the city’s visitor economy”.
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