Westminster council are pushing ahead with a “night life tax” due to be brought in on 9th January that it has been estimated will threaten more than 5,000 jobs.
The scheme is set to charge £4.80 per hour to park in the West End on evenings and weekends and will raise £7 million a year in tax for Westminster council.
A study commissioned by local businesses worried about the impact of the new tax and carried out by respected independent city forecasters The Centre for Economics and Business Research has shown that the cost of raising the £7m tax will be very much higher than the revenues gained through the tax.
The study predicts that more than 5,000 jobs could be lost and cost local businesses circa £800 million.
The businesses that will lose most are restaurants, bars, pubs and cafes.
Michel Roux Jr was quite vocal yesterday in his objections to the plan saying that his Mayfair restaurant Le Gavroche could lose up to 15 staff when the new tax comes in. He was quoted, “There is no congestion problem in Mayfair and never has been since I came her 30 years ago. Some staff would have to be let go because less money will be spent in the restaurant and some would leave voluntarily as they would not be able to afford to park their cars.”
Many business leaders and politicians have voiced their concerns about the tax having a very negative long lasting effect on the West End. Labour MP Karen Buck said “The evidence is piling up that these plans will have a counter productive and potentially dangerous impact on a vital part of London’s economy.”
Westminster council did not carry out any research into the effect of its new tax and their cabinet minister for parking, Lee Rowley dismissed the independent research carried out as “completely flawed guesswork”.
By our reckoning if the research carried out is only 1% accurate the move by Westminster Council warrants serious review.