North Devon MP welcomes new rules on short term lets

North Devon’s MP, Selaine Saxby, has welcomed new rules on short term lets which she says will ‘protect communities and keep homes available for local residents’.

The measures will help North Devon residents from being pushed out of their communities by excessive short term lets thanks to changes in planning rules by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Under the new rules, councils will be given greater power to control short term lets by making them subject to the planning process. This will support local people in areas where high numbers of short term lets are preventing them from finding housing they can afford to buy or to rent.

A new mandatory national register will give local authorities information about short term lets in their area. This, the Conservative Party says, will help councils understand the extent of short term lets and the effects on their communities.

Short term lets are now a significant part of the UK’s visitor economy, and can provide increased choice and flexibility for tourists and business travellers.

To recognise this, homeowners will still be able to let out their own main or sole home for up to 90 nights throughout a year without planning permission and the Government is considering how to apply the register so it does not apply disproportionate regulation, for example, on property owners that let out their home infrequently.

Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, said: “North Devon is a thriving tourist economy, but this announcement highlights that we also have a duty to our local residents. This is a step toward ensuring that enough homes are available for local people, an issue that I have campaigned hard on, and it is great to see it come to fruition today.

“This has been one of my key aims since being elected, as I turned down a job in Government to secure vital changes to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, now Act, as it passed in October 2023. These measures are another significant step, and they will make a difference. I am committed to continuing my work on housing to ensure that families and businesses across North Devon have access to affordable long term homes.”

Secretary of State for Levelling Up Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, said: “Short term lets can play an important role in the UK’s flourishing tourism economy, providing great, easily accessible accommodation in some of the most beautiful parts of our country.

“But in some areas, too many local families and young people feel they are being shut out of the housing market and denied the opportunity to rent or buy in their own community.

“So the Government is taking action as part of its long-term plan for housing. That means delivering more of the right homes in the right places, and giving communities the power to decide.

“This will allow local communities to take back control and strike the right balance between protecting the visitor economy and ensuring local people get the homes they need.”