Tourism agents lament government’s lack of consultation on eco tax

The Federated Association of Travel and Tourism Agents (FATTA) has complained  that the total lack of information on the proposed eco tax until the eleventh hour was "inconsiderate to the industry".  

"FATTA feels the government has chosen to ignore the fact that 44% of tourists arrivals come on organised package holidays which are typically priced many months in advance and that tour operators selling such packages are very often committed to honour brochure prices and absorb any additional costs that may be imposed," the federation said.

Although the eco tax was initially announced as a 2016 budget measure in last October’s budget speech to become effective on April 1, FATTA said the government became involved in long winded discussions with just one stakeholder on the method of collection of the tax.  

"These protracted discussions with the hotel sector resulted in an unnecessary delay in communicating the details to the trade, even forcing Government to delay the introduction date by two months from the original plan.   The details have only now been communicated to operators effectively giving them less than eight weeks’ notice."

FATTA said that although the tax might not have a short term impact on tourist arrivals, government’s "insensitivity" to the pricing dynamics and models of a significant segment of the industry by imposing additional costs at very short notice did not inspire the long term loyalty or confidence of the affected operators to Malta as a destination.

FATTA said it was also extremely surprised by the unprecedented concession to hotels of a 15% “allowance” on the collectable tax in the first five months from the introduction of the tax – effectively a commission on tax collection of an estimated €0.4million - €0.5million to the hotel sector, and questions whether this is what prolonged the discussions on what should have been a simple adaptation of similar schemes across the globe.

"We strongly implore the government to reconsider its position and push back the implementation date further to 1st November 2016," it said.