Rachel Blake

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Efford. I am incredibly proud to represent the centre of the capital; Ronnie Scott’s, Abbey Road, Tate Britain and all the best museums are right here in the centre of London. Every year, 25 million tourists visit Westminster, spending £1.7 billion to support businesses and residents across London. This debate has not focused enough on the essential principles of devolution and the role that different organisations play in supporting the tourism industry. We need to hear, again, that nine out of 10 of the most visited tourist destinations in Europe implement a tourist tax. I have listened to the right hon. Member for East Hampshire (Damian Hinds) and the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Robbie Moore)—although I have to disagree with the hon. Member, because I do think that Brontë country is an international destination, as I am sure many of his constituents will agree—but Hampshire, Hartlepool, Hillingdon and Haworth will not have the same needs as Hyde Park. That is the fundamental principle that we need to focus on today. I firmly support introducing an overnight visitor levy. It is the right thing to do to enable localities to accurately reflect the particular needs of their neighbourhoods. Taking a local and regional approach means that we have to look carefully at what London might need specifically. Unlike in combined authorities outside London, London borough leaders do not have a formal say in decision making about budgets at the Greater London Authority, so it would be the only major city in the country where local authorities would not have joint decision making over the levy mechanisms. I therefore support the mandation of a 50:50 split, allowing local authorities to keep part of the receipts and enabling boroughs such as Westminster to invest in the vital services that keep the heart of London a world-leading tourist destination. That could include investment in the public realm as well as investment in growth measures—