Cornwall tourism chief says Budget a 'missed opportunity' to support businesses
Cornwall Visitor Alliance's chair Katie Warren says the Budget's 'fallen short' of support needed.
Cornwall's tourism industry says this year's Budget was a "missed opportunity" to deliver the support businesses really needed.
Katie Warren, chair of the Cornwall Visitor Alliance, said the sector had been hoping for a cut to tourism VAT and targeted relief from employers' national Insurance contributions, but neither materialised.
"What we felt after Wednesday's announcements was that it was actually a bit of a missed opportunity to deliver the support that Cornwall actually needed," she said.
"Cornwall has everything it needs to be one of the UK's best tourism success stories - and don't get me wrong, the budget did offer some opportunities - but it falls short of the actual meaningful support our businesses needed."
"It falls short of the actual meaningful support our businesses needed"
Ms Warren said a particular worry for the sector is the prospect of a visitor levy, which the government wants to allow local authorities to introduce and collect.
She described this as a "big concern" for many in Cornwall, adding that a tax on visitors could end up hurting local businesses it isn't even aimed at.
"Families pay the tourism tax to come and stay, but then they're not using that money to go out to local attractions, or eat in local restaurants, or go to the local cafe," she said.
"Someone is essentially always going to be a loser there."
'A pressure cooker for small businesses'
Ms Warren said rising costs, taxation and the looming visitor levy are combining to put serious pressure on tourism businesses across the county.
"Our biggest concern is always going to be the cumulative pressure on these businesses," she explained.
"If we have more rising employment costs, more taxation, and then the prospect of tourism tax on top, it all reduces the money available for investment and job creation - it is just a pressure cooker for these small businesses to survive."
Not everything in the Budget was negative, according to Warren. She welcomed recognition for genuine family business succession, which she said matters to Cornwall's many family-run tourism businesses.
"That was one of the positives that came out of the budget - it was recognised that genuine family succession businesses were going to be supported," she said.
"What we need is tax certainty, and practical succession arrangements that allow these businesses to pass that on to the next generation, without forcing business sales or closures."
Despite the disappointment, Ms Warren said the Cornwall Visitor Alliance wants to keep working with both Cornwall Council and the government going forward.
"We are here to work with Cornwall Council and with government to support investment, skills, infrastructure, sustainable tourism, so that it ensures all those benefits will reach businesses, but also the local communities across Cornwall," she said.
Ms Warren said she remains confident about the future of Cornwall's tourism industry.
"I am an optimist at heart, and I'm always optimistic about Cornwall's future," she said.
"Tourism and hospitality are an incredibly resilient and adaptive industry - we always have been."