Make tourists contribute to financing the culture that they partly come to seek. Edinburgh is in the process of giving a very concrete translation to this principle. Since July 24, the Scottish capital has levied a visitor levy (tourist tax) corresponding to 5% of the price excluding VAT of paid accommodation, up to five consecutive nights. The first tourist tax of this magnitude to be implemented at the scale of a British city, it should ultimately bring in between 45 and 50 million pounds (52 to 58 million euros) per year.
Culture figures prominently among the beneficiaries. Once several fixed allocations have been subtracted – including 5 million pounds per year for housing, 2 million over three years for the participatory budget and the reimbursement to accommodation providers of 2% of the sums collected for their management costs – the remaining revenue is distributed between urban infrastructure and services (55%), culture, heritage and events (35%) and tourism management (10%).
This direction had already enabled the municipal council to adopt in February more than 90 million pounds of investment programs over three years. In the cultural field, 5 million are notably planned for the restoration of the Leith Theatre, 3 million to transform the Old Royal High School into a national center devoted to music and 2.75 million to develop an artistic hub around the City Art Centre, on Market Street. From July, £132,000 also funded the Edinburgh Festival Carnival and Mardi Gras.
The tax could now also be used to strengthen the financing of cultural actors. On August 28, the municipality’s Culture and Communities committee approved in principle a 25% increase in grants to major cultural organizations and festivals for 2027-2028. The envelope concerned would increase from around 11 to 13.75 million pounds, or some 2.75 million additional financed through revenue from the visitor levy.
The amount was the subject of a political battle. Municipal services had initially considered a revaluation of only 5%. The Labor administration then proposed 11.5%, before being outvoted on August 28 by a joint amendment from the Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Liberal Democrats bringing the increase to 25%. To provide the necessary resources, part of the sums initially planned for a new cultural innovation fund would be reallocated.
However, the decision is not yet final. The commission referred the matter to the entire municipal council, which must decide on September 17. Festivals weighed heavily in the debate, arguing that their activity constitutes one of the main drivers of tourism in Edinburgh and that part of the tax paid by their audiences must, in return, consolidate their funding.
