#tax-free-shopping

#tax-free-shopping

There was a time - not so long ago, though it already feels sepia-tinted - when London was the sort of place that tourists arrived in with stars in their eyes and left with shopping bags cutting off circulation at the fingers. Harrods bags, Selfridges bags, Mulberry bags, the bright yellow of Fortnum's peeking out of a suitcase being sat on in a hotel lobby. Europe's favourite grown-up playground; Manhattan's chic transatlantic sibling; Tokyo's idea of European swagger with better tailoring and more chaotic restaurants.

We would like to see progressive policies that reinvigorate international visitor spending, that support jobs and stimulate growth across the whole visitor economy, Burberry's chief executive, Joshua Schulman, said in a media call on Thursday. He said that would involve changing the VAT refund scheme, putting us on par with other European countries. We know that our tourist business here in London has gone down ever since that refund was taken away.