Short-term lets: Bill introduced by York MP to tackle 'party houses'

An MP has proposed a new law to licence short-term and holiday-let homes in a bid to stop turning "wonderful little communities in York into nightmares".

York Central's Rachael Maskell said the number of city Airbnbs was increasing, with many rented out as "party houses".

The Labour MP said there were about 2,000 Airbnbs in her constituency, adding they were becoming increasingly common on the outskirts of the city.

Responding, Airbnb said in a statement it "welcomes regulation".

City of York Council said its officers were looking at the scale of the issue.

Speaking in a parliamentary debate about short-term lets, Ms Maskell said: "In the city centre, we often find family streets where there are five or six Airbnbs and it is having a serious impact."

She said one property in a cul-de-sac in The Groves area was being advertised for 30 people, the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported.

"It is at the end of a family residential street, and people in my community have told me that the noise goes on all night," she said.

"People do not feel safe in their own home any more - I heard from one family who put their house on the market and moved out of the city, which was the only way they could escape the party houses that were increasingly in their area."

The MP previously said the short-term lets were also creating a barrier for young people trying to buy their first home.

A private members' bill introduced by Ms Maskell would see a licence required to turn domestic properties into short-term and holiday-let accommodation, give local authorities the power to issue fines and to remove licences and seek to introduce bans on such properties in certain areas.

In a statement, an Airbnb spokesperson said: "The majority of hosts in the UK sharing their home do so for just two nights a month on average to boost their income.

"Airbnb welcomes regulation and has already put forward proposals for a national register that will give local authorities the information they need to regulate home sharing effectively."

Councillor Denise Craghill, executive member for housing and safer neighbourhoods at City of York Council, said: "Unfortunately, as current change-of-use legislation stands, each case has to be pursued on its own individual merits - so any further powers at the national level, whether through planning or a licensing scheme, would be very welcome.

"In the meantime, I will continue to look into measures we can take locally."

The next stage for the bill, its second reading, is scheduled to take place in December.

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