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Barcelona decides to ban Airbnb rentals for tourists

Politiko 2024-06-22 16:13:02

Barcelona decides to ban Airbnb rentals for tourists

One of Spain's top tourist destinations has decided to stop renting apartments to tourists in a bid to improve housing for local residents.

Barcelona city council has announced a radical plan to strip the city of around 10,000 tourist accommodation licenses over the next five years, according to local media reports . 

The measure aims to tackle the growing national housing crisis, which is particularly acute in tourist cities such as Barcelona. It will have residential priority over tourist use in one of Europe's most visited cities.

The plan reflects a global trend of cities beginning to combat the effects of mass tourism on local life.

The decision gives Catalan city authorities the power to regulate tourist accommodation in their municipalities. Barcelona has not issued new licenses since 2014, when it froze supply at 9,600 units, although some subsequent cases are pending court decisions.

The city has experienced large increases in housing rents as housing supply for local residents has declined over the past decade.

Jaume Collboni, the city's mayor, described the measures as "a turning point" in tackling the problem of access to housing, especially for young people. He admitted that the results will not be immediate, but believes that they will open an important political and social debate.

"We want to guarantee the right to live in Barcelona and deal effectively with the housing crisis we have suffered for years," he wrote on Twitter.

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