North Wales Holiday Let Rules Face Legal Challenge

Controversial planning controls for holiday lets and second homes in North Wales are in danger of unravelling. A High Court judge has decided that a hard-fought battle calling for a judicial review can proceed.

At a hearing in Cardiff, Mr Justice Pepperall ruled that the review should proceed because Gwynedd Council's cabinet may have been misled about how the controls impact the nature and extent of the changes to the county's planning policies.

He determined the changes could undermine the policy's effectiveness while rejecting four other objections against planning controls from the People of Gwynedd Against Article 4 (PGAA4) campaign group.

The planning controls mean that homeowners in Gwynedd must apply for planning permission when changing the use of their homes to holiday lets or second homes.

The planning restriction will extend from June to the Eryri National Park, Snowdonia.

Rules may not cover every holiday let

The judge explained that planning controls were not a blanket measure for every holiday home, only those where a change of use is considered 'material' or significant.

He added that mixed-use homes—partly used as holiday lets and second homes—may not meet the materiality threshold and that councillors may not have 'grasped the distinction.'

Homes that failed the materiality test would not need planning permission to operate as holiday lets or second homes.

The PGAA4 was appealing an earlier hearing when another judge rejected a call for a judicial review on the same grounds.

A council spokesman said officers and councillors will consider the verdict.

"We will consider this development and our next steps while noting the judge's decision gives permission for a hearing on a single ground and is not a final ruling," the spokesman added.

Fought carries on, campaigners vow

Gwynedd was the first council in Wales to introduce the Article 4 Direction, a planning restriction that requires homeowners to seek planning permission for second homes and holiday lets.

The council says the policy addresses the county's housing crisis by controlling the number of homes rented as holiday accommodation.

The council charges a 150 per cent council tax premium on second homes and holiday lets.

However, legal proceedings were issued by critics of the policy after £73,000 was raised by homeowners who were worried it would distort the housing market by limiting potential sales. Since the introduction of the planning controls, the value of homes in Gwynedd has dropped by 12 per cent.

The PGAA4 said the decision was good news, but the fight continues for the sake of the economy in Gwynedd.

In April 2024, Welsh Government data revealed that 8 percent of all homes in the county were holiday lets or second homes—4,370 properties. Most of these homes are clustered around Abersoch on the Llyn Peninsular and Tywyn in the south of the county.

Find out more about Gwynedd Council's council tax premiums for second homes and holiday lets