Short-term lets regulations won’t solve housing crisis, says IEA

Commenting on government proposals to allow councils to require planning permission for short-term rentals, Matthew Lesh, Director of Public Policy and Communications at the free market think tank, the Institute of Economic Affairs, said:

“The government is scapegoating holiday lets for the housing crisis. Britain’s restrictive planning system, by not allowing enough homes to be built, is the real reason people cannot afford to live in their own communities.

“A national registration scheme and requiring permission to use one’s own property for holiday lets will not fix anything. But it will add to Britain’s red tape nightmare and could end up doing more damage to local communities by hurting their tourism economy.”