Airbnb notified that the (STA) proposal should be considered carefully

By TIN Media | Hospitality Published 4 years ago on 18 December 2019
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MALAYSIA:

Airbnb Inc notified and alerted that the recent short-term accommodation (STA) regulatory framework proposal should be considered carefully as it could hurt local families or the tourism industry, in general. STA as an industry provides an opportunity for thousands of locals from small to big cities to earn successively.


Mich Goh, Head of public policy (South-East Asia) said “short-term accommodation” has become an economic lifeline for many families via hosting communities, for example, the Kuala Lumpur Home Sharing Club.


She said “As more Malaysians are predicted to default on their mortgage in the second half of 2019, it is important that the government does not make it harder for locals to earn extra income and undermine its shared prosperity vision,”.


She added that Airbnb is also concerned that the draft guidelines could have a chilling effect on the local economy and also can affect Visit Malaysia 2020 (VM2020) campaign goals.


She added “sensible STA rules should be implemented If the government wants to ensure prosperity is shared by all Malaysians and not just those in big cities. Airbnb has long supported regulation, and we continue to advocate for a regulatory framework that balances the need to share prosperity and address Malaysia’s unique challenges,”.


 “With the right rules, STA and hotels may be able to not only coexist but strive and give travelers a greater choice of experiences and accommodation,”
Goh also added that through a complicated framework, makes it harder and more expensive for locals to become STA hosts, which restricts consumers choice, limits competition and stifle innovation in the accommodation sector. She also suggested that the government to look at other countries’ experiences.


She said “We’ve worked with hundreds of jurisdictions around the world to introduce rules that work and would encourage the Malaysia Productivity Corp (MPC) to look at the experience of countries such as Portugal, who successfully reformed its rules and reduced red tape for all parts of the industry to grow tourism. We look forward to continue working closely and collaboratively with the MPC to develop the best regulatory framework for Malaysia,”.

 


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