Reader Arty Hetty has been hearing rumours from elements stirring against the Tourist Levy:

‘Far as I know Edinburgh council are introducing a tourist tax, with the proceeds apparently going to be used to build houses for workers from outwith Scotland, not for services for the residents that are impacted by tourism…needs more investigation but that’s what I saw reported recently.’ 

stewartb (with added comment below from Legerwood) responding to these rumours:

How does it stack up against what the Council is stating? There is an abundance of information on the Levy and what has already been agreed in terms of its initial spend programme. (See City of Edinburgh Council website: ‘How we’re investing the Edinburgh Visitor Levy’ – https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/business/well-invest-edinburgh-visitor-levy/2 )

‘The levy is expected to raise £45-50 million a year by 2028/29. The money generated by the scheme will be reinvested directly into initiatives that benefit residents and enhance visitor experiences.

‘After administration and contingency costs, a fixed amount will be assigned to – housing and tourism mitigation (£5 million annually) – participatory budgeting (£2m over three years) – reimbursement of 2% of collected funds to accommodation providers, to off-set the administrative cost incurred from collecting the levy.

And for the bulk of the revenue: ‘Remaining funds will then be split across three investment streams –

• city operations and infrastructure (55%)
• culture, heritage and events (35%)
• destination management (10%).’

I also noted this: ‘The initial spend programmes have been developed by Council officers, informed by feedback from public consultation and industry engagement, elected members and other stakeholders. The independent Edinburgh Visitor Levy Advisory Forum has also been consulted and provided feedback and recommendations on the programmes.’ nt

Apparently, the relevant Act of Parliament – Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024 – stipulates that a Visitor Levy Advisory Forum must be in place to help inform and shape how the levy will be invested and monitored. Details of the Forum and its terms of reference are provided on the Council’s website.

The initial levy spend programmes were agreed at a special meeting of the Council on Thursday 12 February 2026. It’s a diverse set of spending plans: if I have one concern it is that perhaps it’s too diverse, too much salami slicing of the total annual tax revenue. Not sure where the charge that it will be used ‘to build houses for workers from outwith Scotland’ could come from but would be interested to know!

There is within the diverse spending plan, a reference to a Housing and Tourism Mitigation Fund: ‘This fund could help deliver 472 affordable homes between 2026/27 and 2028/29, with more than 75% potentially available for social rent. Making more social rent homes available would allow households currently using unsuitable temporary accommodation, such as bed and breakfasts, to access more appropriate settled accommodation. This would return B&Bs to their intended use for shorter-term guests.’ As indicated earlier, this seems to constitute just £5 million annually out of the expected total of £40-50 million per annum.

And from Legerwood

That sounds like someone is stirring it. The income from the visitor levy will be spent on a range of projects and yes it does include houses – 472 in 2026-27 according to the article below but they won’t be for migrants.

Here is the link scroll down to the section on the expected income and the various projects that will be funded https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgl8j37839o#:~:text=A%20range%20of%20projects%20and,Hunter%20Square%2C%20Cramond%20and%20Portobello