A move that could lift red-tape restrictions on hundreds of short-term lets operators will be considered by the architect authority behind the country’s clampdown on unregulated of Airbnb-style holiday homes.
A legal judgement that ruled key aspects of the new short-term lets laws should only apply to a proposed future change and that cases should not be considered retrospectively has thrown the new licensing system into a state of turmoil.
The Lord Braid finding means the City of Edinburgh Council faces having to abandon its requirements for established short-term lets providers to secure planning permission to obtain a licence to operate, and has forced the authority to rewrite its guidelines.
Council officers are now to prepare a report around calls by operators that could lead to 1,300 cases that were always described by supporters as existing businesses being rubber-stamped under the spirit of the ruling.
Concerns were raised over potentially waving through applications en masse. The city’s Greens have long been pushing for better regulation of Airbnb-style lets and the planning committee heard the first working group met six years ago in the push to tackle issues around short-term lets such as housing pressures and antisocial behaviour.
The Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers said that "any property in existing use that is not subject to complaint or enforcement is not considered to be a material change of use and therefore does not require planning permission and a certificate of lawful use can be granted".
READ MORE: 'Not only unfair, but illogical': Judge rules against Airbnb-style lets policy
Fiona Campbell, chief executive of the ASSC, told The Herald: "We welcome the decision for council officers to provide a briefing on the ASSC’s proposals and to present a report on this to the next planning committee.
"The ASSC remains committed to open dialogue with both national and local government in order to establish a fair, legal and proportionate regulatory framework for the self-catering sector."
She added: "We appreciate any consideration of our proposals, which we believe to be mutually beneficial and would enable us to move forward together, both addressing the need to regulate but also protecting professional businesses who are so vital in supporting the accommodation needs of the city.
"Until further clarity is provided on the next steps, the ASSC believes it would be prudent for Edinburgh Council to pause processing existing planning and certificate of lawfulness applications until the uncertainty is addressed."
James Dalgleish, Edinburgh planning convener, said earlier: "Those that began before that date [September 2022] may still need it and will be considered on a case by case basis."
The chief executive of Glasgow Airport has revealed his ambitions to add at least a further one million to annual passenger numbers this year, it was revealed in our Business HQ Monthly this week.
In an exclusive interview with business editor Ian McConnell, Andy Cliffe highlighted his belief that this could be achieved with the additional routes.
Business correspondent Kristy Dorsey told the story of how, with a relatively modest 148,000 people living in the city, Dundee has more games developers per head of population than anywhere else in the UK in her deep dive into the origin story of Scotland’s world-leading gaming industry.
Also in Scotland's top business supplement, deputy business editor Scott Wright reveals Scottish shopping centre Silverburn has recorded 15 million visits for the first time in its history in 2023, underlining its recovery from the challenges of the pandemic and its ability to prosper amid the tough conditions facing the retail sector.
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