Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proportion of (a) holiday lets and (b) second homes on the availability of affordable housing in coastal areas; and whether she (i) is taking and (ii) plans to take steps to mitigate that impact.

Traditional short-term lets have long provided visitor accommodation to rural and coastal locations, supporting jobs and the local economy. However, it has been highlighted that there is no single, definitive source of data on short-term lets in England with which to make a more detailed assessment on local economies and the impact on housing.

On February 19, the government announced a mandatory national registration scheme for short-term lets. This will help local authorities understand the size of the market and help identify the impact of high numbers of short-term lets. Further details on the scheme will be provided later this year, including our full response to the consultation and an impact assessment.