Council will not appeal Short Term Lets judgement

The City of Edinburgh Council’s Regulatory Committee agreed to review the Short Term Lets Policy and Conditions yesterday.

The committee also noted the outcome of the Judicial Review of the Council’s Short Term Lets (STL) Policy, and that the Council has decided not to appeal the judgement. To reflect the terms of the Court’s decision, the Council has updated its STL Licensing Policy.

Convener of Regulatory Committee, Neil Ross, said: “The Council was successful in defending large parts of the policy and the Court did not criticise any aspect of the Council’s consultation nor the evidence base which it used to reach its decision. Having reviewed the Court’s decision in detail, the Council has decided not to appeal the ruling.

“We have changed our policy to reflect the decisions reached by the court, which took effect from 13 July, and the date for applying for a licence is 1 October. Existing hosts and operators have until that date to submit an application for a licence.”

More details can be found on the Short Term Lets Licensing section on the Council website.

The council has no discretion as to which type of accommodation is covered by the requirement to obtain a licence.