Second homes: Communities left 'defenceless' by market forces, councillor says

Dylan Thomas's boathouse has helped make Laugharne popular with second-home owners and tourists

Communities in Carmarthenshire have been left "defenceless" against the rise of second homes, a senior county councillor has said.

Cabinet member Cefin Campbell said they accounted for up to 40% of property in some areas, pricing out local people.

The council passed a motion calling for a stronger Welsh Government clampdown through tax and planning rules.

The Welsh Government said the authority was not using the power it already had to charge a premium on council tax.

Mr Campbell, the cabinet member for communities and rural affairs, said younger families "forced to leave" their area would help bolster pupil numbers, the local economy and the Welsh language if they stayed.

He said there was evidence of a rise in second-home ownership in Carmarthenshire due to the pandemic and Brexit as deterrents making it a "bit of a nightmare" to own property abroad.

Laugharne councillor Jane Tremlett said her community felt "quite empty" between October and Easter, while Llansteffan councillor Carys Jones said second homes were having a "crippling" effect on house prices.

The motion called for measures including the need for planning permission for change of use to a second home, a cap on their numbers in each ward, and closing a tax loophole which allowed second homes to be registered as businesses.

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Councillor Kevin Madge had opposed the motion saying tourism brought economic benefits.

Meanwhile more than a quarter of councillors - 19 out of 74 - did not vote after declaring an interest in the matter, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

They included the council's Plaid Cymru leader Emlyn Dole, who owns a second home, while others knew or were related to people involved in the sector.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said it was "aware of concerns about second homes in communities in some parts of Wales" and had set up a cross-party group to explore solutions building on the tools already available, such as the new levy on land transaction tax.

However, the spokesperson said only eight of the 22 Welsh councils were using the powers they had to charge higher council tax on second homes, and Carmarthenshire was not one of them.