Language schools welcome postponement of tax that will cost industry €250,000

The Federation of Language Teaching Organisations of Malta (Feltom) has joined the chorus of tourism operators in its opposition to the new proposed bed tax, asking who will be absorbing the estimated €250,000 that the industry had to pay. A spokesman for Feltom said that while it supported measures to improve the general over-all product, such initiatives should only be introduced following consultation. He was reacting to a story in the Times of Malta yesterday which revealed how the government has postponed the introduction of a new tourism tax following disagreement with operators. The 50c nightly eco levy announced in the last Budget was meant to come into effect in April but there is yet no agreement with operators on how the money will be collected. A Tourism Ministry spokeswoman confirmed that, although the new tax will still be theoretically rolled out at the beginning of next month, the money would not start being collected before June. The ELT industry had already criticised the new tax when it was first announced but yesterday said it supported the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association’s stand on its introduction. “When this measure was announced during last...