Written question WQ86429

The Welsh Government recognises the unprecedented circumstances that the tourism sector was operating under during the coronavirus pandemic. Many self-catering operators were able to benefit from grants and other support provided to help businesses in dealing with the impact of the pandemic, subject to conditions intended to ensure that second home owners letting their property on a casual and infrequent basis were not eligible. The support was intended to help mitigate a range of financial and operational impacts on businesses, as a consequence of the national and local restrictions in place at various times.

The Welsh Government also recognises that operators were periodically unable to let their properties during this time. Self-catering properties were, however, able to operate during some periods when some other accommodation providers could not, and demand was known to be high when restrictions allowed. The legislation used to classify self-catering properties for local taxation purposes, therefore, remained in place consistently during periods of disruption. A sample of assessments undertaken by the Valuation Office Agency in relation to 2020-21 indicates that the majority of assessments continued to exceed 70 days let. Suspending the criteria could have had the unintended consequence of allowing second home owners to access financial support intended for businesses.