Community and tourism leaders call for definitive data on Airbnb and Stayz in Tasmania

COMMUNITY and tourism leaders have united to call for short-stay accommodation providers Airbnb and Stayz to provide data on where properties are located to take the guesswork out of policymaking.

COMMUNITY organisations and tourism stakeholders have banded together to call for short-stay accommodation providers Airbnb and Stayz to provide data on where properties are located to take the guesswork out of policymaking.

Shelter Tasmania, the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania, the Tasmanian Council of Social Services, and the Local Government Association of Tasmania made the call in a joint statement this morning, asking for the data to be provided by the end of next month.

It comes ahead of a Greens’ motion to pause regulatory permits for short-stay accommodation to be debated in parliament later today, which may test the casting vote of Speaker Sue Hickey.

MORE: GREENS’ PUSH COULD TEST HODGMAN’S HOLD ON POWER

The Government agreed to work with Airbnb and Stayz on data sharing following the urgent housing summit in March, however TICT chief executive Luke Martin said “the time for waiting has come to an end”.

MORE: NO EASY FIX FOR HOUSING CRISIS, WARNS PREMIER

Kym Goodes, TasCOSS chief, from left, Luke Martin, Tourism Industry Council Tasmania boss, Pattie Chugg, from Shelter Tasmania, and Katrena Stephenson, Local Government Association of Tasmania CEO, at this morning’s press conference. Picture: SAM ROSEWARNE

OPINION: TARGETING AIRBNB IS MISSING THE MARK

TasCOSS chief executive Kym Goodes said the groups were calling on the Government to take the lead and bring about an outcome quickly.

“What we need to see is what the definitive listings look like so that we can start to make informed decisions about where communities have been most impacted, and what is the most appropriate response to that impact,” Ms Goodes said.

LGAT chief executive Katrena Stephenson said despite a requirement for people renting out secondary properties on the sharing economy to obtain permits, councils were seeing “very low permit numbers”.

Dr Stephenson said it was impossible to assess the impact of the sharing economy from council permits because the data was insufficient.

She said low resources meant councils struggled to ensure short stay accommodation providers were complying with permit requirements.

Premier Will Hodgman this morning told State Parliament short-stay accommodation was one element of the housing market “that we are addressing as a government”.

MORE: MINOR CHANGES TO AIRBNB REGS