Last chance to take part in Government consultation about short term holiday lets
The MP for York central says there should be tighter regulation
It's your last chance to tell the Government about the impact short term holiday lets are having on communities across North Yorkshire.
Ministers have been running a consultation to look about whether tighter rules are needed but it closes tonight. The MP for York Central Rachel Maskell has been campaigning for tighter regulations and is urging everyone to have their say:
"Please, encourage your friends, family and neighbours to do so too. There is still time to make your voices heard.
"There are now 257,000 short term lets in the UK, according to the DCMS estimates last year. It is estimated that 20,387 homes have been flipped to short term lets since I first raised this issue in Parliament, with more than 1 home per hour being turned into a holiday let in England in 2021 and 2022.
"In York, Holiday Lets have risen by 120% in 3 years, and it is thought there are 2,079 active rentals. Constituents regularly contact me with issues around repeated and persistent anti-social behaviour, rubbish disposal, parking problems, and the lack of affordable housing. With almost 1000 families in York waiting for a home, and many more struggling with the recent huge rent increases, it is more important than ever that we see these homes returned to residential use."
Lou Mortimer lives in York and the house next to her used to be advertised as a short term let for 11 people: "It was awful, it messes with your mental health, it shakes the foundations of the community, because you just don't know who is coming and going, it was just awful. When you are out in the garden and you can hear them shouting, there was a couple of times when I asked them to keep the noise down and I got quite abusive language back."
You can take part in the Government consultation here.