“There is no immediate plan,” Chow told reporters after an event at Dato Keramat yesterday, following an objection by a hoteliers group.
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Visitors who stay at four-star hotels and above currently pay a fee of RM3 per night, while those in three-star and below are charged RM2.

On Wednesday, Penang Island City Council mayor Rajendran Anthony said that the state would consider raising its hotel fees by at least 50%, in a bid to enhance its tourism offerings and fund related infrastructure.

He said the increase had been under consideration “for some time now” and that a 50% rise was likely.

Separately, Chow also addressed grouses by the Malaysian Association of Hotels over having no say over how the hotel fees were spent.

He said the fees collected, which were previously placed in a specific trust fund for hotel levies, are now channeled to the state’s consolidated fund following recommendations by the auditor-general.

“Aren’t they (hoteliers) happy about the tourism sector today, after all the effort we put in from the hotel levy and other state funds used to create parks like Gurney Bay, which cost RM220 million, and other tourism products?”

“We are also spending money to subsidise airlines to come here,” he said.

Penang MAH chairman Tony Goh was quoted by the Malay Mail as saying that the association was no longer updated on the total funds collected, disbursed, or their purpose over the past two years.

Over RM72 million has been collected from the hotel fees, imposed by the Penang island and Seberang Perai city councils since 2014.