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2021 年 6 月(第一套) Travelers Should Pay Their Way 游客是否该为自己的旅行买单?

Nicola Sturgeon's speech last Tuesday setting out the Scottish government's legislative program for the year ahead confirmed what was already pretty clear.

Scottish councils are set to be the first in the UK with the power to levy charges on visitors, with Edinburgh likely to lead the way.

Tourist taxes are not new.

The Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan has a longstanding policy of charging visitors a daily fee.

France's tax on overnight stays was introduced to assist thermal spa towns to develop, and around half of French local authorities use it today.

But such levies are on the rise.

Moves by Barcelona and Venice to deal with the phenomenon of "over-tourism" through the use of charges have recently gained prominence.

Japan and Greece are among the countries to have recently introduced tourist taxes.

That the UK lags behind is due to our weak, by international standards, local government, as well as the opposition to taxes and regulation of our aggressively pro-market ruling party.

Some UK cities have lobbied without success for the power to levy a charge on Visitors.

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