Powys campsites are concerned that a change to planning regulations in England could leave them at a disadvantage while the Welsh Government drags its heels on the issue.
Owners of campsites near the border between Powys and Shropshire say changes that allow English landowners to open po-up sites for more days each year will leave Welsh campsites at a disadvantage.
In July 2023, the UK Government extended Permitted Development Rights in England, giving English landowners and farmers the right to operate campsites for up to 60 days a year without having to apply for extra planning permission.
Meanwhile, the Welsh Government has yet to take similar steps, meaning Welsh pop-up campsites are still restricted to just 28 days.
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Owners in the area have accused the Welsh Government of delaying changes that would allow Powys campsites to compete with English based sites that no longer have to be as selective about when they open.
Freda Shaw, who runs The Boat House on land alongside the River Severn near Welshpool, labelled the difference on either side of the border “ridiculous”.
She said: “There’s a pop-up campsite a couple of miles away that is just over the border and they can open for 60 days. It’s just ridiculous that we are being punished by the inaction of the Welsh Government.
“I lost my husband in April and I’ve now got to pay people to do all the jobs around the farm and on the campsite.
"We’ve got the same bills to pay as other campsites and being restricted to 28 days means you're fighting a losing battle, it’s hard to make it pay.
“Campsites like mine are bringing much needed money into rural communities after a horrendous summer.
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“Why are the Welsh Government objecting to this when everybody wants it to be extended to 60 days?”
Permitted Development Rights were temporarily extended across England and Wales in July 2020 to help rural communities recover from the Covid pandemic and to provide extra capacity for people holidaying in the UK as they were unable to travel abroad.
The Welsh Government undertook a consultation on the issue in February 2022, but 18 months later has yet to make an announcement on the subject.
A petition, which can be found here, calling on the Welsh government to bring Permitted Development Rights in line with England has been launched.
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