A WORCESTERSHIRE MP who is heading a campaign for £20 billion in tax cuts for the tourism industry was handed two donations totalling £5,000 from UK-leading hotel bosses, it has emerged.

Nigel Huddleston, who won the Mid-Worcestershire seat in May, recently became co-chairman of a cross-party parliamentary group of eight MPs, established by the British Hospitality Association.

The Cut Tourism VAT group, a coalition of 43,000 hospitality and leisure businesses, is campaigning to slash VAT for the tourism industry from 20 per cent to five per cent. It claims to be worth £20 billion over the next decade.

During the run-up to the election the Conservative received donations from the CEO of Travelodge Peter Gowers for £3,000 and £2,000 from John Dunford, the chief executive of Bourne Leisure, which owns Butlins and operates 52 leisure sites around the country.

Both payments, which were made in December, were registered properly with the Electoral Commission, which keeps a database of candidates’ donations. The money was sent directly to the Mid-Worcestershire Conservative Association to help with the costs of the election campaign.

There is no suggestion Mr Huddleston has breached any rules, and both donations were properly recorded on the Electoral Commission’s website, which requires would-be MPs or their local branches to declare anything over £1,000, and with the parliamentary Register of Members Financial Interests.

Upon being elected, Mr Huddleston had to declare any donations within the previous 12 months, and these were properly registered with the Commons authorities on June 2.

Mr Huddleston says he has known Travelodge boss Peter Gowers since their time at Oxford University together and he counts him as an “old friend”, who wanted to help get him elected.

Before becoming an MP Mr Huddleston worked for Google as head of travel and he met Mr Dunford, the chief executive of Bourne Leisure, at tourism conferences. They too have become firm friends.

“It should be no surprise that friends were willing to help out during the election - both of these donations were made before I got into parliament,” he said.

“It was well before I was on the CMS committee (Culture, Media and Sport) or anything else, it’s not dodgy at all and that’s evidenced by the fact I put it into the public domain.

“Prior to the election I was required to register them with the Electoral Commission as a candidate, which I did, and upon getting into parliament it had to go on the register (of members interests), which I did, it’s all transparent and open.”

He also said he has doubts about whether VAT can be cut for the tourism industry, but said the parliamentary pressure group’s remit is wide.

“I think the chances of a cut in VAT are pretty slim but the whole point here is to educate parliament on how important travel and tourism is,” he said.

He added that no donations would ever influence his efforts in Parliament.

However, some political rivals have suggested the rules should be changed to prevent a conflict of interest - or the suggestion that MPs are accepting money to try to influence Government policy.

Neil Franks, from Mid-Worcestershire’s Green Party, who stood against him for the parliamentary seat, said: “I think the law needs to change to stop these kind of situations occurring. It just looks odd.

“We would recommend that he (Mr Huddleston) avoids donations from companies and prominent individuals in the tourism industry so that there is no suggestion of conflict of interest with his new role.”

Cut Tourism VAT is led by Bourne Leisure Group, Merlin Entertainments Group, the British Hospitality Association and the British Association of Leisure Parks, Piers and Attractions.

It is campaigning for the rate of Tourism VAT to be brought into line with competitor destinations within the European Union.

According to its website there are a limited number of areas where EU rules allow governments to implement a reduced rate of VAT and in the case of tourism the United Kingdom is one of only three countries not to take advantage of a reduced rate.

“This means that British families or international visitors choosing a British holiday would pay almost three times as much VAT compared to a French or German break, and twice as much as one in Italy and Spain,” it says.

Despite repeated attempts, Neither Mr Dunford nor Mr Gowers was available to comment on their donations.

However, Mr Gowers did release a statement saying: “Almost three million jobs and nearly 10% of the country’s total trade is based on tourism. It’s a vital industry for us to promote. Yet our tax system makes it hard for us to compete internationally. "Of all the EU member states, only four have a level of VAT on tourism that is as high as we have in the UK. “It can’t be right that people in the UK have to pay more than almost everyone else across Europe for their holidays and business trips. “The government needs to look seriously at reducing VAT on tourism - a measure which independent studies say would boost jobs and growth across the country.”

A spokesman for the parliamentary authorities said they did not routinely check or vet donors and no complaint has been received about Mr Huddleston’s donations.