Thursday November 20th 2025
Flat on Brighton Terrace, Gullane, is no longer being used as a holiday let
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp
Council officers have been accused of trying to “retrofit” evidence to support claims a holiday let owner had been renting out his home unlawfully.
The owner of the property in Gullane, East Lothian, appealed to Scottish Ministers after the local authority issued an enforcement notice against them weeks after they said they had stopped accepting short term let bookings.
They said the notice could damage their reputation insisting they informed the council they were no longer renting it out weeks before the notice was issued.
Now the Scottish Government Reporter has accused the council of using evidence gathered after they took the enforcement action to try and back up their claims the rules had been broken.
And he criticised their initial reliance on evidence which was 19 months old to make the initial challenge.
Quashing the notice, the Reporter said the council had produced a listing on a website in October 2025 which appeared to show the property available for rent as proof it was continuing to be a holiday let despite the fact the enforcement notice had been issued the month before.
And they said the only evidence the council could produce for issuing the notice related to the initial application for permission to use the flat as a short term let 19 months earlier.
They said: “The council relied on evidence dating back over 19 months and then tried to retrofit the evidence they obtained after the notice had been issued to justify its belief that there was a breach of planning control.
“The online listing on its own does not prove that the use was subsisting when it was obtained on 22 October 2025, let alone when the notice was issued.
“No booking was completed, and the appellant has been steadfast in their submissions that they have nothing to do with the listing and that the use
had ceased when the notice was issued. I have no reason to doubt the appellant’s assertions.
“I uphold the appeal and quash the enforcement notice.”
East Lothian Council has been asked for a comment.
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