The survey, commissioned by the campaign organisation 38 Degrees, also showed that 89% of Scots who expressed an opinion believed these landlords should be required to register their properties. Currently, private landlords must register with local authorities, but holiday let landlords taking bookings through companies like Airbnb are not required to.

The polling asked 1,019 adults in Scotland between July 16-18.

A Scottish Government consultation on holiday lets closed on July 22. As a response to that, more than 10,000 people have signed a 38 Degrees/Living Rent petition calling for new regulations to “stop holiday lets destroying our communities”. They’re calling on the Scottish Government to:

• give councils the power to limit the number of holiday lets in their areas;
• bring in new taxes on holiday lets; 
• and require holiday let landlords to register like normal landlords. 

Megan Bente Bishop from Living Rent said: “People across Scotland know all too well what the current lack of regulation on holiday lets means for our communities. It means families forced out, communities ripped apart and ever fewer homes for people who want to live and work in Scotland. At the same time, the landlords who own these properties are making a killing. This urgently has to change, or the damage done will be irreversible.”

Chloe Lawson of 38 Degrees added: “More than 10,000 people across Scotland have signed a petition demanding that the Scottish Government stop holiday lets destroying our communities. This polling suggests that the vast majority of people across Scotland could also back that demand. The ball is now in the government’s court: will they stand up for communities across the country?”