How we are looking to regulate short-term lets in tourist hotspots - Rachel Maclean

But it has also brought its fair share of challenges, especially in some of our most beautiful and popular holiday areas, including places like Scarborough, Whitby and beyond. The erosion of community spirit, as holiday hotspots oscillate between summer tourist traps and winter ghost towns. Anti-social behaviour from late night parties keeping families awake at night.

The impact on locals, who have grown up there, lived and worked there their whole lives, is severe. They suddenly find themselves priced out of the market. Young people struggle to get their foot on the housing ladder or to rent somewhere affordable that hasn’t been turned into a short-term let. From our call for evidence, there were an estimated 257,000 short-term and holiday lets in England in 2022, with the majority concentrated in just a few areas across the country. I was struck reading this paper that the number of private rented homes had fallen so drastically in Scarborough, while the number of holiday lets has surged according to research by the council.

The Government is tackling these challenges head-on. We have launched two public consultations on measures that would help regulate the holiday-lets sector. Our aim is to ensure that its growth works for local communities, not against them.

At the heart of the proposals is the introduction of planning permission if someone’s home starts to be used as a short term let. Existing businesses would not be affected, but these changes would give councils the option of more control over the number of new short-term lets going on the market, to make sure local housing needs are being met. People need to afford to live in tourist hot spots to do the jobs the industry needs to thrive.

I don’t think every council will need to use these powers, but in our tourist heartlands and in places across Yorkshire, we want to give local communities the power to tackle issues that affect them.

We know many homeowners benefit from letting out their home so we are consulting on the number of days they can do so before planning permission may be required - at 30, 60 or 90 nights a year. Through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, we are also introducing a new registration scheme for all short term lets in England. This will help councils to monitor the sector better, making sure that properties are sensibly maintained; and help people get a better picture of who exactly they are renting from.

We are listening to landlords and businesses along the way, and many have broadly welcomed the introduction of a registration scheme. The sector’s heavy hitters have backed a register as an invaluable tool in helping councils take action against bad actors who give the sector a bad name – those who rent out their homes with little to no consideration for their neighbours, or who let out properties that are entirely unsuited as holiday homes.

Rachel Maclean is Minister of State for Housing and Planning.