A SENIOR MP has pleaded with Andy Burnham to scrap his “cruel” tourist tax that will hammer parents visiting their sick children in hospital.
Alicia Kearns said Labour’s levy on hotels, B&Bs and holiday lets will impose “hardship” on families who need to stay close to loved ones undergoing treatment.
She spoke out for the first time about her daughter who underwent urgent neurosurgery at just four months old in 2021.
Her daughter has a rare condition called unicoronal craniosynostosis where the skull closes over too early leaving no room for her brain to grow.
Ms Kearns was allowed to stay overnight with her baby in Great Ormond Street Hospital after her three-hour surgery. Doctors removed parts of her skull and reshaped her face.
Alicia’s husband slept in a hotel nearby and they all stayed there a second night to be close to the hospital in case anything went wrong.
“I completely understand poor parents who spend months of their lives living outside GOSH, having to take Airbnbs or whatever they can,” the shadow national security minister said.
“I’m very lucky it was only two nights and I’m very lucky that we could afford that.”
Ms Kearns’ daughter had to wear a helmet for 18 months to force her skull and cheek bones to grow the correct way. It had to be refitted every two to four weeks.
The mother-of-three added: “If you are from Cornwall or Belfast travelling all the way to London every two to four weeks – it’s just not fair on families.
“There are so many unseen costs financially – let alone emotionally – that it is immoral to now impose a cost like this.
“It’s very cruel. It’s an additional hardship on those who are already suffering.
The Tory MP said her daughter, now five years old, is doing “amazingly” well.
But added: “Unless the Prime Minister changes course, he will be inflicting cruelty on people in some of their darkest moments and their scariest moments of their lives. Surely he can do better than this.”
Labour is handing powers to council leaders and mayors to impose unlimited taxes on tourists for overnight stays.
Trade body UKHospitality has warned it could add £100 to a family holiday.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the levy in the capital will be capped at 5 per cent of the cost of accommodation.
Ms Kearns called for the whole tax to be scrapped: “You can’t tax yourself to prosperity or to economic growth. That’s something Labour just doesn’t fundamentally understand.”
And warned it will hammer the hospitality industry in her rural constituency of Rutland and Melton where people usually visit for just one or two nights.
“It will cause massive problems for areas like mine,” she added. “People will think ‘let’s just go for a day trip instead of staying overnight’.
Leading children’s charities also intervened in today’s Sun on Sunday, calling on the Government to make an exemption for those seeking medical treatment.
Louise Parkes, Chief Executive of GOSH Charity, says: “A hotel levy risks placing yet another financial burden on families already facing the unimaginable pressure of having a seriously ill child, this is deeply unfair.
“Families travelling from across the UK for potentially life-saving treatment for their child are not tourists, they must not face an additional tax simply to stay close to their child while they receive vital treatment.
“We are calling on the government to ensure families travelling for their child’s care are protected from any additional costs.”
Maya Parkin, Senior Public Affairs and Policy Officer at Bliss charity for babies born premature or sick, said parents can spend weeks or “even months” travelling to and from hospital or staying nearby so they can be partners in their baby’s care.
“During this time, many families face significant additional costs, including accommodation, travel, food and lost income from time away from work.
“Parents and carers staying close to a hospital because their premature or sick baby is receiving treatment are not tourists, and they should not be treated as such.
“Any future legislation introducing an Overnight Visitor Levy must include a clear and explicit exemption for parents and carers staying in accommodation near a hospital where their baby is receiving care.
“No family should face additional financial pressure simply because they need to be close to their baby during what is often one of the most stressful and traumatic periods of their lives.”
Nathan Grant, Director of Operations at The Sick Children’s Trust charity, said most families have financial concerns before staying in their free Homes from Home for those with a seriously ill child in hospital.
He added: “For those we cannot support in our ‘Homes from Home’, the prospect of an additional Overnight Visitor Levy on an already costly hotel room only serves to increase those pressures, both emotionally and financially.
“Anything that can be done to make life a little easier for families facing what are often the most difficult moments of their lives would be welcomed by all of us here at The Sick Children’s Trust.”
Sonia Malik, Associate Director of Policy at Young Lives vs Cancer, said a cancer diagnosis comes with a “significant” financial burden.
She said: “We would welcome consideration from government and local leaders of steps to reduce the financial impact on young cancer patients and their families, including possible exemptions for those staying away from home for medical treatment, so they are not faced with further extra costs at an already difficult time.”
Jeremy Clarkson has also spoken out against the tax warning it will put “even more pressure” on the nation’s businesses.
Migrant hotels will be exempt because they are classed as “temporary accommodation”.
A Ministry for Local Government spokesperson said: “We’ve always said it will be for local leaders to decide whether to introduce the levy.
“It would apply to short-term, commercially let overnight accommodation and we expect local leaders to factor the needs of medical visitors into their decision-making process, as they decide whether a levy is right for their community and how it should be applied.”