English: Can I just remind Members of my declared interest in that my husband is the partner in a tourism business? Cabinet Secretary, I'm still hoping that this bed tax is something of an Aunt Sally and is included in the list of Welsh Government taxes being considered so you can be seen as a listening Government when you drop the idea. At the moment, it's a little bit like threatening a child with spinach for breakfast because it's good for them, and then claiming that you're being merciful when you don't carry out that threat. All this time, of course, that poor old child is regarding this threat as punishment for some unknown wrong that they don't deserve, and that's how the tourism sector is feeling at the moment. Members of the tourism cross-party group, who were there at my invitation as chair, not because of Darren Millar's exhortation, members who represent more - many, many more - than 305 people and represent all parts of the Welsh visitor economy, are very nervous about the fact that this is even being considered. English councils on the Welsh border are asking: will it be good for them, or will they be losing business because their marketing offer crosses the border? They've all seen world destination cities like Edinburgh and Bath, and even communities like Camden, pull back pretty swiftly when they recognised the wider implications and ask, 'Why is Wales thinking of this?' No-one wants to open the sluice gates to the UK charging bed tax when those beds are already more visibly expensive than their equivalents in other countries. And, yes, I know that VAT is a matter for the UK Government, and like you and MPs from all parties, including my own, we think that there is a strong argument for reducing VAT, but we cannot make that decision in this Chamber. What we can do here is agree not to impose further taxes on our tourists. I just want to use my own example of why high VAT counters the point made by many that we are only talking about a few pounds and that no one will notice. Rome is a world destination, and people will definitely pay more to go there. You pay bed tax on top of your 10 per cent VAT but, not being widely advertised, it can come as something of a surprise to visitors. And it was a 12.5 per cent surprise for my family when we went in February, on a budget, to see the rugby. You do notice an extra €35 when you're planning to spend just €280. Would it stop me going to Rome rather than London? I don't think it would. Would it stop me going to Aberystwyth rather than Whitby? Well, you know, quite possibly. Let's remember that, at the moment, the majority of visitors to Wales are from within the UK and are already facing the heaviest tax burden, generally, of our European counterparts. Of course, a budget for that holiday is a feature in anyone's decision making, and we don't want even modest bed taxes affecting those decisions and reversing very good trends for Welsh tourism at the moment. I want to mention specifically Barcelona and why the tourism tax was introduced there. This is something that I discussed directly with the Catalan tourism agency and Barcelona tourism when I went to visit them not long after the tax was introduced. There were two reasons there. The first was that, in the wake of the crash, tourism was basically all they had left that was making money - all they had left to tax. The bed tax was introduced to assist the region's economic recovery, with 25 per cent of those receipts going to health and education. The remaining money was destined for a tourism development fund, into which the sector itself directly paid extra money via its chambers of trade. That money was used to support a quality tourism offer, but it was also used to develop tourism in such a way that it was better balanced with the lived experience of residents. That was the second reason: residents of the region were starting to object to the way that their standard of living was being affected by the economic collapse of sectors on one hand, and the way that their quality of life was being affected by the very high numbers of tourists in their space, pushing up the costs of goods and services. For that particular audience, the bed tax was held out as a deterrent and a way of balancing numbers. In any event, I think it's probably worth mentioning that the majority of the Catalan Parliament did not support the introduction of the tax, and it only passed due to a considerable number of abstentions. Part of the reason for those was the issue that Ryanair was receiving huge subsidies to bring budget tourists to smaller airports in the region. I'm wondering if that kind of confused and contradictory support for the sector is what supporters of the tourism tax may have in mind. Thank you.
Welsh: A gaf fi atgoffa'r Aelodau am y buddiant rwyf wedi ei ddatgan am fod fy ngŵr yn bartner mewn busnes twristiaeth? Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet, rwy'n dal i obeithio mai cocyn hitio braidd yw'r dreth wely a'i bod wedi ei chynnwys yn y rhestr o drethi Llywodraeth Cymru sy'n cael eu hystyried er mwyn i chi gael eich gweld fel Llywodraeth sy'n gwrando pan fyddwch yn troi cefn ar y syniad. Ar hyn o bryd, mae ychydig fel bygwth plentyn gyda sbigoglys i frecwast am ei fod yn dda iddynt, a honni wedyn eich bod yn drugarog pan na fyddwch yn cyflawni'r bygythiad hwnnw. Yr holl amser, wrth gwrs, mae'r plentyn druan yn ystyried y bygythiad fel cosb am ryw ddrygioni anhysbys nad yw'n ei haeddu, a dyna sut y mae'r sector twristiaeth yn teimlo ar hyn o bryd. Mae aelodau o'r grŵp twristiaeth trawsbleidiol, a oedd yno ar fy ngwahoddiad fel cadeirydd, nid oherwydd bod Darren Millar yn eu hannog, aelodau sy'n cynrychioli mwy - llawer iawn mwy - na 305 o bobl ac sy'n cynrychioli pob rhan o economi ymwelwyr Cymru, yn nerfus iawn am y ffaith bod hyn yn cael ei ystyried hyd yn oed. Mae cynghorau yn Lloegr ar y ffin â Chymru'n gofyn: a fydd yn dda iddynt, neu a fyddant yn colli busnes oherwydd bod eu cynnig marchnata'n croesi'r ffin? Maent i gyd wedi gweld dinasoedd sy'n gyrchfannau byd-eang fel Caeredin a Chaerfaddon, a hyd yn oed cymunedau fel Camden, yn tynnu'n ôl yn eithaf cyflym pan welsant y goblygiadau ehangach a gofyn,'Pam fod Cymru'n meddwl am hyn?' Nid oes neb am agor y llifddorau i'r DU godi treth wely pan fo'r gwelyau hynny eisoes yn amlwg yn ddrutach na rhai cyfatebol mewn gwledydd eraill. Ac ydw, rwy'n gwybod mai mater i Lywodraeth y DU yw TAW, ac fel chi ac Aelodau Seneddol o bob plaid, gan gynnwys fy mhlaid fy hun, rydym yn credu bod yna ddadl gref dros leihau TAW, ond ni allwn wneud y penderfyniad hwnnw yn y Siambr hon. Yr hyn y gallwn ei wneud yma yw cytuno i beidio â gosod trethi pellach ar ein twristiaid. Hoffwn ddefnyddio fy esiampl fy hun i ddangos pam y mae TAW uchel yn gwrth-ddweud y pwynt a wnaed gan lawer nad ydym ond yn sôn am ychydig bunnoedd ac na fydd neb yn sylwi. Mae Rhufain yn gyrchfan fyd-eang, a bydd pobl yn bendant yn talu mwy i fynd yno. Rydych yn talu treth wely ar ben eich TAW o 10 y cant, ond os nad yw'n cael ei hysbysebu'n eang, gall fod yn dipyn o syndod i ymwelwyr. Ac roedd yn syndod o 12.5 y cant i fy nheulu pan aethom ym mis Chwefror, ar gyllideb, i weld y rygbi. Rydych yn sylwi ar €35 ychwanegol pan na fyddwch ond yn bwriadu gwario €280. A fyddai'n fy rhwystro rhag mynd i Rufain yn hytrach nag i Lundain? Nid wyf yn credu y byddai. A fyddai'n fy rhwystro rhag mynd i Aberystwyth yn hytrach nag i Whitby? Wel, mae'n bosibl, wyddoch chi. Gadewch i ni gofio, ar hyn o bryd, fod y rhan fwyaf o ymwelwyr â Chymru yn dod o'r tu mewn i'r DU ac maent eisoes yn wynebu'r baich treth trymaf, yn gyffredinol, o gymharu â'n cymheiriaid Ewropeaidd. Wrth gwrs, mae cyllideb ar gyfer y gwyliau yn nodwedd ym mhenderfyniadau pawb, ac nid ydym am i drethi gwely sy'n gymedrol hyd yn oed effeithio ar y penderfyniadau hynny a gwrthdroi'r tueddiadau da iawn mewn twristiaeth yng Nghymru ar hyn o bryd. Rwyf am sôn yn benodol am Barcelona, a pham y cyflwynwyd y dreth dwristiaeth yno. Dyma rywbeth a drafodais yn uniongyrchol gydag asiantaeth dwristiaeth Catalonia a thwristiaeth Barcelona pan ymwelais â hwy'n fuan ar ôl i'r dreth gael ei chyflwyno. Roedd dau reswm yno. Y rheswm cyntaf oedd mai twristiaeth, yn sgil yr argyfwng ariannol, oedd y cyfan a oedd ganddynt ar ôl, yn y bôn, a oedd yn gwneud arian - y cyfan a oedd ar ôl ganddynt i'w drethu. Cyflwynwyd y dreth wely i gynorthwyo adferiad economaidd y rhanbarth, gyda 25 y cant o'r derbyniadau hynny'n mynd at iechyd ac addysg. Âi'r arian a oedd yn weddill i gronfa datblygu twristiaeth, ac roedd y sector ei hun yn talu arian ychwanegol i mewn iddi'n uniongyrchol drwy ei siambrau masnach. Defnyddiwyd yr arian hwnnw i gefnogi cynnig twristiaeth o safon, ond cafodd ei ddefnyddio hefyd i ddatblygu twristiaeth yn y fath fodd fel ei fod yn cydbwyso'n well â phrofiad byw trigolion. Dyna oedd yr ail reswm: roedd trigolion y rhanbarth yn dechrau gwrthwynebu'r ffordd y câi eu safon byw ei effeithio gan gwymp economaidd sectorau ar y naill law, a'r ffordd yr effeithid ar ansawdd eu bywydau gan y nifer fawr iawn o dwristiaid yn eu gofod, yn gwthio costau nwyddau a gwasanaethau i fyny. I'r gynulleidfa benodol honno, cafodd y dreth wely ei defnyddio fel rhwystr a ffordd o gydbwyso niferoedd. Beth bynnag, rwy'n credu ei bod yn werth nodi, mae'n debyg, nad oedd mwyafrif Senedd Catalonia yn cefnogi cyflwyno'r dreth, a'r unig reswm y cafodd ei phasio oedd o ganlyniad i nifer sylweddol a ataliodd eu pleidlais. Rhan o'r rheswm am hynny oedd bod Ryanair yn derbyn cymorthdaliadau enfawr i ddod â thwristiaid teithiau rhad i feysydd awyr llai yn y rhanbarth. Tybed ai'r math hwn o gefnogaeth ddryslyd ac anghyson i'r sector yw'r hyn sydd gan gefnogwyr y dreth dwristiaeth mewn golwg. Diolch.