Govt signals support for resort levy

The Government has all but committed to introducing a targeted tourist levy in Queenstown, if it gets public backing.

A "milestone" referendum on introducing a levy, which could generate $40million a year, has already received widespread support after it was announced by Queenstown Lakes Mayor Jim Boult yesterday.

The details, including how it would be collected and how much it would be, are unclear.

But Mr Boult said it could add as much as $40 million a year to the council's coffers.

He said this morning, that while he could not yet say exactly how much the levy would earn, possible income had been calculated based on a rough figure of $7.50 per visitor, per night.

The levy appears to have Government support.

Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis was unavailable for comment yesterday, referring inquiries to Housing and Urban Development Minister Phil Twyford.

Mr Twyford said if a referendum showed clear support, the Government would consider any necessary legislation.

"As [Queenstown is] New Zealand's most iconic tourist destination, ensuring it is a world-class destination benefits the entire country.

"The Government is keen to work in partnership with Queenstown Lakes District Council to develop a plan to build infrastructure to sustain its growth now and into the future."

Mr Boult said yesterday a levy was the "best chance, perhaps our only chance, to get the financial support we need to make a difference to the quality of life to all of us living and working here".

"We desperately need a new way of funding our infrastructure that shares the cost with everyone using our roads, our water supply, our wastewater, and more."

He believed a levy could be introduced in 2021.

"We cannot keep up the quality of infrastructure that we need to ... We're very conscious that if a visit to Queenstown deteriorates because we're not spending money on infrastructure, then New Zealand's largest industry, tourism, will suffer."

While the model was still being worked through, it would be "a percentage of whatever a particular item would cost", rather than a flat fee.

Destination Queenstown chief executive Graham Budd praised the referendum, and hit out at the previous government for its reluctance to get behind a tourism levy.

Mr Budd said he had been part of a group lobbying for a levy for years.

They were unable to make much headway until the change of government in 2016 because of the "resistance" to the idea they had encountered beforehand, he said.

He believed the business community would be supportive of the announcement, which he called a "milestone day" for Queenstown.

National Party tourism spokesman Todd McClay did not respond to a request for comment yesterday.

Clutha-Southland National MP Hamish Walker said he would "continue to push hard for Queenstown to receive funding as quickly as possible".

Queenstown Lakes District Bed Tax Lobby Group spokesman and accommodation operator Nik Kiddle said businesses supported the "overall objective", but the way revenue was collected was a "complex issue".

"We've consistently argued publicly to the council that we would not want to see the lion's share of the burden falling on one or two subsectors of the local economy ... so something which shares the burden equitably and fairly among all the beneficiaries of tourism is something that we would countenance, and we're quite willing to work with the council on that."

The referendum, believed to be the district's first, will cost about $70,000.

The process is expected to take about 90 days and public consultation will end in early June.