Welsh council expected to limit second homes
Welsh language campaigners are expecting Cyngor Gwynedd’s Cabinet to approve the introduction of an Article 4 direction which would limit the number of second homes and holiday lets in the area.
The most recent figures from the Welsh government display their housing situation isn’t a cause for a concern, it’s an emergency. The data shows that by May 2023 10,872 people, including children had been placed in temporary accommodation, an increase of a third compared with 2022. In an attempt to address the housing crisis, Welsh language group, Cymdeithas yr laith, are calling on Cyngor Gwynedd’s cabinet to limit second homes and holiday lets and expect other local authorities to follow suit.
In a bid to address the national housing emergency, in 2021 the Welsh government granted councils the power to introduce an Article 4 direction, which would make planning permission mandatory before turning a property into a second home or holiday accommodation.
Following a long consultation process, Cyngor Gwynedd’s cabinet are set to make a final decision on whether to introduce this policy on 16th July. If it is passed, they will become the first local authority in Wales to implement it.
Dr Jeff Smith, Chair of the Cymdeithas yr Iaith Sustainable Communities Group, said: ‘We are pleased to see Gwynedd Council proceeding with the process of introducing an Article 4 Direction across the whole county, but the housing crisis in Wales exists beyond the borders of Gwynedd.
‘We are now calling on other local authorities to follow this example across their counties.
‘It is evident that financial considerations, administrative capacity and uncertainty about the process have prevented them from proceeding, so the Welsh Government has a duty to prepare a support package that includes funding for additional staff in order to administer it along with clear guidelines.
‘What is the purpose of these new powers if local authorities cannot make use of them due to a lack of resources or leadership?’
As well as the number of families being without a permanent home increasing, the lack of housing is driving people out of Gwynedd. According to figures from the last Census, the population of the county fell by 3.7% and the proportion that spoke Welsh by 1%.
Image: HS Spender
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