Rachael Hamilton MSP and Shona Haslam have welcomed a U-turn by the Scottish Government on controversial short-term let regulations which were heavily criticised by the tourism industry.
Following weeks of pressure by Mrs Hamilton, Scottish Conservative colleagues, the Association of Scottish Self-Caterers, the Scottish Bed & Breakfast Association and representatives of the self-catering and B&B industries, legislation for a short-term lets licensing scheme has been withdrawn from the Scottish Parliament.
The Scottish Government has announced a new stakeholder working group will be established to help develop guidance. The aim of the guidance is help to provide reassurance on the operation of the scheme to operators and hosts in the sector. The Working Group now includes leaders of both the ASSC and the Scottish B&B Association.
If the SNP win the upcoming election, they intend re-lay the legislation on the controversial licensing system before Parliament in June.
The Scottish Government will continue with legislation allowing councils to establish short-term let control areas. This is to help local authorities that experience pressures with a high number of short term lets, such as Edinburgh.
Mrs Hamilton believes that the licensing scheme must be delayed further, as the industry will not have had a chance to recover fully by June.
The Borders MSP is now urging the SNP Government to work with the sector and listen to their concerns first, before ploughing ahead with any further legislation on a licensing scheme.
Rachael Hamilton MSP said:
“This is a victory for common sense, as these regulations introducing a short term let licensing scheme were highly damaging and hit the industry hard, whilst it’s already on its knees.
“Thanks to pressure from stakeholders, my Scottish Conservative colleagues and me, the SNP Government have reversed the decision to implement the worst part these regulations at the eleventh hour.
“Bed and breakfasts and self-catering businesses are the backbone of rural tourism, and they do not need any more red tape at this time.
"They have already been let down by the poor offering of grant funding from the SNP Government.
“Threatening to bring back these regulations in a matter of months fails to give the guarantees tourism businesses across rural Scotland need.
“They need to listen to the industry’s concerns and redraft these regulations”.
Shona Haslam, Candidate for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale said:
“These regulations would have caused significant harm to our struggling short-term let industry at this time.
“I am glad the SNP Government has seen sense, but it shouldn’t have taken this long for them to realise.
“The Borders’ self-catering and B&B industry has been subjected to Covid restrictions for months now and we need to see them recover before any decisions are made on further regulation.
“We will not introduce short-term let control areas here in the Borders, as we want tourism to flourish and we do not experience the same pressures as cities like Edinburgh on local housing supply”.
CEO of the Association of Self-Caterers Fiona Campbell said:
“The Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers welcomes the withdrawal of the Licensing Order by the Scottish Government.
"We consistently warned that the proposed legislation was not fit for purpose, would entail unintended consequences for our vital tourism industry and would heap costs on small businesses at a time when they could least afford it.
“The ASSC commits to working constructively with the Scottish Government and other stakeholders through the new Working Group to ensure that anything that is taken forward in June – whatever the electoral outcome – is measured and proportionate, and also works to support the recovery of Scottish tourism in these challenging times.”
David Weston, Chairman of the Scottish Bed & Breakfast Association, commented:
“We are delighted that the Minister has withdrawn the flawed and misconceived draft legislation on a new licensing scheme today, and thank Rachael Hamilton and the other MSPs who have raised concerns on behalf of B&B owners and professional self-caterers across Scotland.
“The legislation as originally drafted was a sledgehammer to crack a nut, and we hope as part of the Working Group to be able to influence its development for the better before it is eventually laid before Parliament.
“This has been democracy in action, after many hundreds of B&Bs and self-catering business owners wrote to their MSPs, who raised these concerns with the Minister and Parliament.”