The Government has published its response to the consultation on introducing an Overnight Visitor Levy in England. The proposal would give strategic authorities the power to introduce a levy on paid overnight stays in their area – essentially an additional percentage added to the cost of accommodation.
With Universal United Kingdom Resort coming to Bedford, this suddenly becomes very relevant to us.
Looking at this purely from a local's point of view – which I am – I actually think I could support it.
Do I realistically think the majority of the millions of people visiting Universal every year are going to leave the resort, head into Bedford town centre and spend loads of money? Probably not.
So, hypothetically, if there was something like a 1% visitor levy on overnight accommodation, and that money genuinely went back into Bedford and the surrounding area, would I support it? I think I would, yeah.
Universal is going to bring enormous benefits to the area, but it's also going to bring millions of additional visitors and extra pressure on local infrastructure and services. If a very small charge on overnight stays could generate money that was then spent locally, I can see the argument for it.
Of course, the big question is where would the money actually go?
Would you support something like a 1% levy if you knew the money was being reinvested locally? Or is it simply another tax that visitors shouldn't have to pay?
I'm really interested to hear this one from both locals AND people planning to visit Universal.
