The Welsh government has announced a further crackdown on holiday lets.

The government in Cardiff has outlined plans to introduce a statutory registration and licensing scheme for all visitor accommodation in the country.

It says introducing the scheme will make sure anyone who lets accommodation “meets a relevant set of standards”.

The first phase will see the register introduced for the first time, before a licensing scheme is brought in – which will initially focus on compliance.

A similar scheme has been in place in Northern Ireland since 1992, and Scotland introduced its own last year.

The UK government also consulted on the introduction of a registration scheme for short-term lets in England in 2023.

As part of its cooperation agreement with Plaid Cymru, the Labour government has introduced a series of measures to tackle what it says is the negative impact of second homes and short-term lets on affordability for local people.

These measures include giving councils the ability to increase council tax premiums for second homes by up to 300%.

Dawn Bowden, deputy minister for arts, sport and tourism, said the scheme would help “inform future policy decisions”.

“The visitor economy is changing rapidly, and while the growth of online booking platforms has brought many benefits, there are concerns around compliance with existing requirements and the impact of short-term lets on housing stock and our communities,” she added.

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Plaid Cymru’s designated member Sian Gwenllian said the plans would “create a more sustainable tourism offer”.

“This will result in strengthened controls on residential properties operating as short-term holiday lets, leading to greater fair play for all.”

The Welsh Conservatives said the plans “may simply increase red tape and serve as the foundation of their dreaded tourism tax“.

It is expected legislation will be put before the Senedd by the end of this year.

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