Short-term lets - licensing scheme and planning control area legislation: draft business and regulatory impact assessment (BRIA)
Business and regulatory impact assessment (BRIA) relating to the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Short-term Lets) Order 2021 (“the Licensing Order”) and the Town And Country Planning (Short-Term Let Control Areas) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 (“the Control Area Regulations”).
Footnotes
1 All Scottish Government consultation and research documents on short-term lets from 2019 and 2020 referred to in this document can be accessed from www.gov.scot/publications/short-term-lets.
3 The Green Book notes, “The rationale for intervention can be based on strategic objectives, improvements to existing policy, market failure or distributional objectives that the government wishes to meet.”
4 www.gov.scot/publications/research-impact-short-term-lets-communities-scotland/
5 www.gov.scot/groups/regulatory-review-group
6 The Scottish Government had follow-up conversations with officials from City of Edinburgh Council, Glasgow City Council, West Lothian, Argyll & Bute Council and Highland Council.
7 See www.airbnb.co.uk/help/article/1379/responsible-hosting-in-the-united-kingdom, www.assc.co.uk/policy/code-of-conduct and www.ukstaa.org/policy.
8 The revenue from these fines would go to the Scottish Consolidated Fund.
9 As it was in May 2019.
11 https://news.airbnb.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2019/06/Airbnb%E2%80%99s-Impact-in-Scotland.pdf
12 Paragraph 1A of schedule 1 to the 1982 Act, inserted by paragraph 4 of schedule 2 of the Licensing Order.
13 From 1 April 2021, see www.mygov.scot/renting-your-property-out/registration/.
14 Licence Income from Fees 2018/19, City of Edinburgh Council (9 January 2020) available at: https://democracy.edinburgh.gov.uk/documents/s12361/Item%207.1%20-%20Licence%20Income%20from%20Fees%202018-19.pdf
15 Open for Business: LGA Guidance on locally set licence fees, Local Government Association, available at: www.local.gov.uk/sites/default/files/documents/5%2013%20%20OpenForBusiness_02_web.pdf
17 Data on visits taken from VisitScotland national and regional profiles. Real-terms spend calculated using the UK GDP deflator.
18 From 2013 to 2019, average annual growth in visits and real-terms visitor spend was 5.7% and 6.2% respectively in Edinburgh and the Lothians, 3.2% and 5.4% in Greater Glasgow and the Clyde Valley, and 3.9% and 0.7% in the Highlands. These are areas with particular high concentrations of short-term lets (see Table 1 in Research into the impact of short-term lets on Communities).
19 In markets experiencing growth, displacement of existing providers could take the form of lower growth than they would otherwise have experienced.
21 Scottish and Local Tourism Economic Impact Assessment (Airbnb, BiGGAR Economics), October 2020.
22 See P3 of Airbnb’s submission to the Local Government and Communities Committee.
23 scottishtourismalliance.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Tourism-Task-Force-recovery-plan.pdf
24 BICS weighted Scotland estimates: data to wave 31 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
25 Monthly GDP Estimate: March 2021 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
26 This relates to the change in the quantity demanded of a good in relation to a percentage change in its price. The more inelastic this is, the smaller the reduction in the quantity demanded of a good for a given change in price. The Scottish Government published a review of elasticities relevant to tourism in Scotland in March 2021, which is available at: Elasticities relevant to tourism in Scotland: evidence review - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
27 Patrick Robinson, Director of Public Policy for Airbnb writing in The Times (online edition) www.thetimes.co.uk, Airbnb regulations will still the beating heart of tourism, 23 November 2020.
28 https://news.airbnb.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2019/06/Airbnb%E2%80%99s-Impact-in-Scotland.pdf
29 Source: Non-Domestic Rates Roll, June 2021; Covid-19 Business Support Experimental Statistics: Strategic Framework Business Fund (Tranche 6) and Other Local Authority Support Schemes
30 A host currently pays non-domestic rates if their property is not their main residence and intended to be let commercially for at least 140 days per year.
31 In meetings and correspondence.
32 https://news.airbnb.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/10/ScotlandShortTermLetsProposal1310.pdf
33 As set out at section 225 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995.
34 Rounded to the nearest pound. Information correct as of December 2020.
35 Comprising £445 for determining the application and £150 for inspecting the premises over the three years of the licence.
36 Dundee charges £58 for additional inspections.
37 Fife charges: £190 for a pre-application inspection; £100 for a missed appointment; and £24 for reissuing a licence.
38 See www.checkatrade.com/blog/cost-guides/gas-safety-certificate-cost/ where they recommend budgeting £80.
39 In 2017, this was estimated at £200 per property, see table following paragraph 198 in www.gov.scot/publications/energy-efficiency-condition-standards-private-rented-housing-scotlands-energy-efficiency/pages/5/
40 Assuming one hour’s work (see footnote Error! Bookmark not defined.).
41 Assuming the host took two hours to do this themselves (see footnote Error! Bookmark not defined.).
42 Estimating one hour’s work and £5 for materials. Cost of time for applicants in industry is £17 per hour (for reading regulations and filling out forms, etc.). This comprises average (median) gross hourly pay in the Scottish Real Estate sector of £14 in 2020 (ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 5.5a, all earnings), uplifted by 22% to reflect non-wage labour costs (as per UK Government Regulatory Policy Committee guidance note on implementation costs).
43 Ballpark estimate, depends on detailed circumstances.
44 Ballpark estimate, depends on detailed circumstances.
45 Assuming 2.5 hours work at £17 per hour (see footnote Error! Bookmark not defined.).
46 Note that it is possible to apply for a CLUD for a proposed change of use with a lower application fee. An application for a CLUD for a proposed use would be on the basis that there would be no material change of use so is not relevant in a control area.
47 https://news.airbnb.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/10/ScotlandShortTermLetsProposal1310.pdf
Contact
Email: shorttermlets@gov.scot
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