Regulation of short-term home rental accommodation platforms like Airbnb must be rejected.
MEC of Economic Opportunities, Beverley Schäfer is strongly opposed to plans by the national government to regulate short-term home rental platforms like Airbnb.
The draft Tourism Amendment Bill, currently out for public comment includes a definition of short-term home rental accommodation so as to place "thresholds" on their offering.
The Western Cape Government will be making submissions to oppose any regulations which could impact tourism revenue and affect people's private property rights.
Minister Schäfer said: "The Western Cape Government is driving tourism growth and in order to develop this sector, we need a sufficient mix of hotel, B&B and home rental room nights in order to accommodate a wide variety of tourists and budgets."
"According to Airbnb, they contributed R8.7 billion to the national economy between June 2017 and May 2018, creating jobs and opportunities for 22 000 people in South Africa. We need to stimulate innovation and use disruptors in order to put tourism on steroids in this province."