Whitby to vote on its future

Town’s housing need in crisis

IN THE Queen’s Speech this week, the Government became the latest in a long line of administrations to claim it intended to clean up the planning system and make it simpler for residents.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill seeks to enable local communities in England to stage referendums over the style and size of extensions, new homes and conversions on their street.

However what the bill did not include was stipulations on who these new homes would be made available to.

In the same week as the Queen’s Speech, residents of Whitby have called for a referendum regarding legislation that can restrict any new homes built in the town to a use that is both local and permanent.

The drastic step is needed. Whitby is encountering a housing crisis. Its beautiful seaside location has seen it become a highly desirable location for second home owners and landlords looking to rent properties to visitors.

Today one in four of the town’s properties is classed as holiday let or second home.

While this is beneficial to those of considerable means and to landlords, the knock-on impact has sent prices soaring, meaning locals, young people and families are struggling to get a foothold on the housing ladder.

This intolerable situation has resulted in people, whose families in some cases trace their roots in Whitby back several generations, being forced to move elsewhere owing to lack of availability and prohibitive prices.

The 100 or so residents of the town who have called this referendum are to be congratulated for seeking to protect their town for future generations.

It is these people who live and work in the town who make Whitby so special.

If more of them are forced to leave the town then its appeal as a visitor attraction will diminish, along with a crucial slice of Yorkshire’s heritage.