Tourism Alliance Weekly Update – 25 June

In this newsletter:
• TOURISM POLICY CONFERENCE 2026
• SUBMIT YOUR NEWS
• PARLIAMENTARY & POLITICAL
• DEVOLVED GOVERNMENTS
• TA NEWS
• INDUSTRY INTELLIGENCE
• MEMBER EVENTS
• FORWARD LOOK

From Eddy Leviten, Executive Director

It has been quite a week to be in the tourism business. The weather is hot and the football is on. The hospitality sector should, in theory, be doing very well. Whether it will depends on what you think of the Chancellor’s observation at Treasury oral questions this week that the Iran war “is clearly having consequences here at home” – the most senior acknowledgement yet of what our members have been living with for months.

On the political front, the change at the top of Government adds a new dimension to everything we are watching. Sir Keir Starmer has resigned; Andy Burnham is the clear frontrunner to succeed him. As Mayor of Greater Manchester, Burnham backed the BID-based visitor levy that George Osborne used as a template when describing fiscal devolution options to the Lords Economic Affairs Committee. What a Burnham Government would mean for the OVL and for the Visitor Economy Growth Strategy that the current Government has still not published is the question occupying the sector’s strategists. Parliament rises on 22 July. The clock is ticking.

This week I gave oral evidence to the APPG for Hospitality and Tourism’s Visitor Levy Inquiry. I pushed back on the “cup of coffee” framing – if it is small enough to be dismissed as trivial, it is too small to work; and if it is large enough to work, it will hurt demand. Either way the visitor economy loses. Evidence from the German Hotel Association was striking and somewhat chilling; it isn’t working! I also hosted the first meeting of the Visas, Border and Inbound Access Working Group on Wednesday, with a strong turnout from across the membership. The conversation was sharp and well-informed; exactly what the working group should be. Earlier in the week I had a productive session with the Heritage Alliance International Quarterly, and attended the Home Office Employers Advisory Group on Wednesday, particularly timely given the visa and workforce themes running through the working group agenda.

The Great British Summer Savings scheme launched yesterday, 25 June. Businesses should now have the 5% VAT rate applied to eligible lines. One more thing to keep an eye on: Edinburgh’s Visitor Levy launches 24 July. England’s first live lesson in what we are legislating is less than four weeks away. Watch it carefully.

TOURISM POLICY CONFERENCE 2026

Early Bird Booking Now Open 

Under the theme Tourism 2030: Growth, Access, and Competitiveness, the conference will focus on the key challenges and opportunities facing the sector; including competitiveness, inbound access, workforce and skills and the role of tourism within wider UK growth policy.

Join us on 17 November in London for an essential day of high-level discussion. We are bringing together policymakers, industry leaders and expert voices to tackle the policy issues that will define the next chapter of UK tourism.

SUBMIT YOUR NEWS

Do you have news, events or announcements relevant to the visitor economy? Members are welcome to submit items for inclusion in future editions. Please send submissions to mandy.belnick@tourismalliance.com.

PARLIAMENTARY & POLITICAL

OVL: Schools, Canal Boats and the Scope the Government Cannot Define
James Cartlidge MP (Con) tabled four written questions this week on the OVL’s impact on school overnight educational visits — GCSE and A-Level field trips, Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, residentials. All four received the identical ministerial response from Alison McGovern MP: “The application of the proposed Overnight Visitor Levy to educational overnight visits, including any guidance, exemptions or costs, remains under consideration as part of the policy design process.”

That brings to four the accommodation categories for which the Government cannot confirm OVL scope: camping and caravan pitches (WQ 5335), asylum hotel accommodation (WQ 5337), canal boats rented short-term (WQ 9105), and educational overnight visits (WQs 10195–10198). The Bill may reach Report stage without answers on any of them.

Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru) asked the Lords what consideration has been given to introducing a tourist tax in England. Lord Livermore (HMT Lords) described the OVL as giving Mayors “control of a new local revenue raising power to drive growth in their regions, including in the visitor economy” — the first HMT Lords statement describing visitor economy growth as a stated purpose, though falling short of a ring-fencing commitment.

The APPG Inquiry held Session 3 on 23 June (see TA News for the TA’s own evidence). Meanwhile, Lord Sharpe of Epsom has tabled a Lords oral question on the visitor levy for Tuesday 21 July — the last week before summer recess. If the Government’s OVL consultation response has not been published before that date, it will face difficult questions in the upper chamber with no ability to respond before Parliament rises.

Sources: Hansard — WQs 10195–10198, answered 22 June 2026 | Hansard — Lords HL850, answered 24 June 2026

VAT: The Cost of 10% Is Now on the Parliamentary Record
The most significant new policy data point of the week came from Sir Julian Smith MP (Con, Skipton and Ripon), whose written questions to the Chancellor produced the first complete VAT cost schedule to be published in a parliamentary answer. The figures, confirmed by Dan Tomlinson MP (Exchequer Secretary):
• Reducing to 15%: £5 billion
• Reducing to 12.5%: £8 billion
• Reducing to 10%: £10.5 billion
• Reducing to 5%: £17 billion
• Zero-rating: £23.5 billion

The TA is calling for a permanent 10% rate for the visitor economy — the same rate as France, Spain and Italy. The Treasury has now confirmed the cost of that ask on the parliamentary record: approximately £10.5 billion per year. That is substantially less than the £17 billion figure that has dominated the debate over a 5% rate. The Treasury’s counter-argument — that businesses only “partially pass on” VAT savings — cuts both ways: if even partial pass-through increases demand and sustains jobs, the net Exchequer cost is lower than the gross figure.

Ben Lake MP (PC, Ceredigion) and Euan Stainbank MP (SNP, Dunfermline) tabled further WQs asking about 10% VAT specifically for Wales and Scotland, receiving the same £11 billion figure. The cost is now confirmed by three separate answers across different questioners. The figure is settled.

Sources: Hansard — WQs 9562–9563, answered 22 June 2026 | Hansard — WQs 9774–9777, 11167, answered 23 June 2026

Iran War: Chancellor Acknowledges Domestic Consequences
Rachel Reeves MP told the House at Treasury oral questions on 23 June: “We did not start the war in the Middle East, we did not join it… but the war is clearly having consequences here at home. We will continue to monitor the situation and take every action necessary to support families.” This is the most senior confirmation yet of the conflict’s domestic economic impact — at Chancellor level, on the floor of the House. The Chancellor also confirmed the Summer Savings scheme was timed to coincide with the start of Scottish school holidays.

Alex Easton MP (Ind, North Down) asked specifically whether the temporary VAT reduction was adequate to support the hospitality sector in Northern Ireland. The Exchequer Secretary defended the scheme but did not announce additional support for Northern Ireland beyond it.

Sources: Hansard — Treasury Oral Questions, 23 June 2026

Shadow DCMS Minister: ‘Assault on the Great British Holiday’
Joe Robertson MP (Con, Isle of Wight East), Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Shadow Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) team,, told the House at DCMS oral questions: “National insurance is up, new taxes on part-time work, an overnight visitor levy is in the pipeline, extra taxes on air passengers and ferry passengers. This Government’s assault on the Great British holiday has been brutal.” He pressed Stephanie Peacock MP to recommit to the 50 million international visitors target and called on the Chancellor to cut the tax burden. Peacock reiterated commitment to the target without directly addressing the tax question.

Robertson’s elevation to the DCMS team shows a commitment on tourism policy. Previously a backbench questioner on the OVL and lead of the 3 June coastal hospitality debate, he is now a formal TA parliamentary contact for Opposition engagement.

Sporting Events Bill: Reported Without Amendment
The Sporting Events Bill [HL] completed Lords Committee stage on 24 June and was reported without amendment. All substantive amendments were withdrawn, including those on sustainable transport and integrated ticketing for spectators, SME advertising protection, and grassroots investment conditionality. The Bill now proceeds to Report stage. Members in the events sector should watch for Report stage amendments on visitor-economy aspects.

Sources: Hansard — Sporting Events Bill Lords Committee, 24 June 2026

DEVOLVED GOVERNMENTS

Edinburgh Visitor Levy: 24 July 2026 — Four Weeks Away
Edinburgh’s 5% visitor levy launches on 24 July 2026 — the first live OVL-style scheme in the UK. The charge applies to the accommodation cost only (not VAT), is capped at five consecutive nights, and covers hotels, B&Bs, self-catering, short-term lets, hostels, campsites and similar. Operators retain 2% of the levy they collect to offset administration costs. Bookings made and paid (in part or full) on or after 1 October 2025 for stays from 24 July are subject to the levy.

Edinburgh projects the levy will raise up to £50 million per year, with revenue allocated to housing provision, visitor economy mitigation and participatory budgeting. The ring-fencing model — including visitor economy investment as a stated revenue purpose — is what the TA is pressing the English Government to adopt as mandatory, not optional, for the OVL (assuming we get the legislation of course).

Sources: Edinburgh City Council — Visitor Levy

TA Gives Oral Evidence to APPG Visitor Levy Inquiry
On Tuesday 23 June, TA Executive Director Eddy Leviten gave oral evidence to the APPG for Hospitality and Tourism’s Visitor Levy Inquiry at Portcullis House, Session 3: Design and Implementation — covering revenue ringfencing, administrative burden, platform enforcement and lessons from international schemes.

The TA’s position: pause, assess, and do not legislate until an independent evidence test is met. If Government proceeds regardless, four safeguards are the minimum required: no levy until the national STR registration scheme is fully operational; a full Regulatory Impact Assessment before legislation; all revenues ringfenced for tourism and destination investment with formal industry input on spending; and a consistent national framework rather than a postcode lottery of rates and systems.

On the “cup of coffee” argument used by levy supporters, the TA’s rebuttal: if the rate is small enough to be dismissed as trivial, it is too small to change behaviour — and therefore pointless. If it is large enough to work, it will suppress demand. Either way the visitor economy loses. More fundamentally: that cup of coffee is currently being spent in the local economy, circulating through the supply chain. The levy routes the same pound through a mayoral authority with no guarantee it returns.

Key statistics cited: every £1 of direct tourism GVA generates £1.80 in wider economic activity; a £2/night levy would cause 7,000 job losses and a £400 million decline in tourism spending (Oxford Economics/UKHospitality); a 5% levy would cause 33,000 job losses and a £2.2 billion GDP reduction by 2030; the UK already ranks 113th of 119 countries for tourism price competitiveness (WEF).

Visas, Border and Inbound Access Working Group — First Meeting
The Visas, Border and Inbound Access Working Group held its first meeting online on Wednesday 24 June. The group brings together organisations including UKinbound, Marketing Manchester, UKEvents,, English UK, Visit West and BETA. The agenda covered a range of issues and there will be a programme of delivery and data collation to support the TA and member lobbying. The next working group meetings are: Workforce, Skills and Regulatory Burden — 30 June, 1.30pm (online); Communications and Industry Voice — 1 July, 10am (online).

INDUSTRY INTELLIGENCE

DCMS Publishes First-Ever Tourism Productivity Estimates
DCMS published provisional productivity statistics for DCMS sectors on 25 June 2026 — the first time tourism has been included in the DCMS productivity dataset. The headline: DCMS sector output per hour is £34, compared with a UK economy average of £47. Output per job is £55,000 against a UK average of £75,000. Both measures fell slightly between 2023 and 2024.

The statistics are published as “official statistics in development” — methodology is still being refined and Labour Force Survey data quality caveats apply. Regional breakdowns do not include tourism, as regional GVA is not yet available for the sector.

For the TA, the lower-than-average productivity figure requires careful framing. GVA per hour is not the right measure for a sector whose value lies in job creation (2.4 million jobs), geographic distribution (84% of domestic overnight spend outside London), and economic multiplier effects (£1 direct GVA generates £1.80 in wider economic activity). The TA will address this in its forthcoming competitiveness report.

Sources: GOV.UK — DCMS Sector Productivity Estimates 2024, published 25 June 2026

Oil Prices Fall as Strait of Hormuz Recovers

Brent crude fell below $72.50 per barrel this week — back to pre-conflict levels — as tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz resumes following the US-Iran memorandum of understanding and a temporary easing of US sanctions. Markets are increasingly confident that near-term supply disruption will remain limited, though infrastructure damage may take years to repair.

For the visitor economy: easing energy costs reduce one of the most acute pressure points for hospitality operators; lower cost-of-living pressure on consumers frees discretionary spend for leisure and travel. The impact on long-haul inbound travel is slower to reverse — booking confidence in APAC and Gulf-routed markets lags oil price movements. The TA’s Iran crisis monitoring continues.

MEMBER EVENTS

VisitEngland All On The Coast — 29 June to 5 July
Film your 45–60 second coastal video, post using #AllOnTheCoast, tag @visitengland and @VisitEnglandbiz. Details: visitbritain.org/get-involved-my-coast-has-most-domestic-campaign.

TA Working Groups — Upcoming Meetings (All Online)
• Workforce, Skills and Regulatory Burden — Tuesday 30 June 2026, 1.30pm
• Communications and Industry Voice — Wednesday 1 July 2026, 10am

Contact the TA team to participate.

Heathrow Expansion NPS Consultation — Open Now
Closes 1 September 2026. Members with aviation-dependent tourism businesses are encouraged to respond.

Tourism Policy Conference 2026 — 17 November
Save the date: Tuesday 17 November 2026, London. Sponsorship opportunities available — contact the TA team.

FORWARD LOOK

• VisitEngland All On The Coast social activation — 29 June–5 July. #AllOnTheCoast.
• Summer Savings VAT scheme — Now live — runs to 1 September 2026.
• Workforce, Skills and Regulatory Burden Working Group — 30 June, 1.30pm. Online.
• Communications and Industry Voice Working Group — 1 July, 10am. Online.
• eGate access extended to children aged 8–9 — 8 July 2026.
• High-value council tax surcharge consultation closes — 14 July 2026.
• Lord Sharpe of Epsom — Lords OVL oral question — 21 July 2026. Last week before recess.
• Parliament rises for summer recess — 22 July 2026.
• Edinburgh Visitor Levy launches — 24 July 2026.
• Northern Growth Strategy consultation closes — 31 July 2026. TA submitting response.
• Heathrow NPS consultation closes — 1 September 2026.
• Summer Savings scheme ends — 1 September 2026.
• German school groups — simplified entry — 1 August 2026.
• European Athletics Championships — Birmingham, August 2026.
• Visitor Economy Growth Strategy — Expected before summer recess — not yet published.
• MHCLG OVL consultation response — Expected shortly, including FSA extension decision.
• Fiscal Devolution Roadmap — Autumn Budget 2026.
• APPG OVL Inquiry findings — To be published with Government recommendations.
• TA Competitiveness Report — By year-end, Taxation and Competitiveness Working Group.
• Glasgow Visitor Levy launches — 25 January 2027.
• STR registration scheme mandatory — April 2027.
• Welsh OVL implementation — 1 April 2027.
• Tourism Policy Conference 2026 — 17 November 2026, London.
• Universal UK Resort opens — 2031.