SECOND HOME OWNERSHIP

That this House notes the distortions caused to rural housing markets by high levels of second home ownership, which can exclude local people from buying a home in their own community; further notes that disproportionate second home ownership can lead to critical reductions in demand for local services such as schools, post offices and public transport; calls for local communities to be given powers to set the right balance for them between affordable and second homes; further calls for planning law to be amended to make transferring the use of a property from a main home to a second home a formal change of use; and calls for local authorities to be allowed to levy business rates on second homes in their areas.