Hoteliers in the South-west Rally Against the Introduction of a Tourist Tax

An appeal against the introduction of a Tourist Tax in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, with support from 42 hotels in the area, is now being considered by the Secretary of State following the levy being voted in by the narrowest of margins of just one vote earlier in May.

With only 75 hotels in the area involved in the vote, 56% of the hotels have joined together in a bid to get the ballot result declared void. The group that has collectively lodged the appeal are comprised of a number of the leading hotel chains in the UK and independent hotels from Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.

A spokesperson for the group leading the appeal said, “Following the announcement on 14th May that the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Accommodation BID had successfully passed by a single vote, it quickly became clear that a significant number of hotels had not been able to vote and some of these were not even aware that the ballot was taking place. If any one of these hotels had been able to vote, the levy simply wouldn’t have been voted in.

The levy appears to us to have been rushed through with very little consultation from either the ABID team or the Council. A significant number of mistakes appear to have been made where the guidance for Local Authorities has not been followed both prior to and during the voting process. This resulted in 13 hotels being denied their vote, and there also appear to be at least another 10 hotels excluded from the vote that passed the criteria for inclusion. As of yet, we haven’t had any answers to explain why this is.

It has become abundantly clear that there isn’t widespread support for this initiative amongst our hotel community. Only 16 hoteliers voted in favour of the introduction of a levy and of these 16, only two were not part of the ABID Board who formulated the levy. In just four weeks, we have identified a staggering 42 hotels that do not support the levy, and it is likely that there will be more to join the appeal soon.

A number of hotels contacted BCP Council after the ballot announcement highlighting issues with the ballot and asking that the council exercise their veto power to declare the ballot void. Unfortunately, BCP Council declined these requests.

Members from the group leading the appeal met with BCP Council last week to ask for the proposed start date of 1st July to be delayed until after the appeal process has been completed. However, the ABID team are insisting that the levy will apply from 1 July despite the appeal.

Hoteliers are now in an impossible position where we are being told to collect the levy from customers next week, when the appeal process is ongoing. The ABID Board have said that even if the appeal succeeds, the money raised from guest Levy payments does not need to be refunded. We feel that this would be both morally and legally incorrect and would lead to significant reputational damage to our hotels. We asked for clarification on this over two weeks ago and saw their legal advice on this matter, but we still haven’t heard from the ABID team.

We understand the challenges that face our local authorities in terms of funding, but it is clear this is not the right course of action for our businesses and guests alike. This scheme financially penalises just 75 hotels in the area and makes the destination less appealing to visitors, who will be faced with a nightly visitor charge that can be avoided in neighbouring resorts.

We acknowledge that we have our part to play, but we believe the burden should be spread wider than just 75 hotels, which would then avoid the need to pass levy charges onto our guests, who play a vital part in supporting our businesses and visitor attractions. We want to send a clear message that visitors are welcome in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.

We can only hope that the ABID team see sense, revisit their plans and delay the introduction of the levy whilst our appeal is heard.”