Tourist levy unlikely as government fears losing out to Australia, Canada

Mon, 19 Jun 2017

By Sophie Boot June 20 (BusinessDesk) - The government remains unconvinced on the merits of a tourist levy, with fears it could "turn off the tap" on New Zealand's largest export earner as Chinese tourist numbers drop. At parliament's commerce select committee on Monday, Tourism Minister Paula Bennett said central government had already stepped into new areas of funding such as carparking and footpaths in recognition of the importance of tourism to regional growth, but that a further levy was unlikely. "I do seriously worry about the c...

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