Glavina held a meeting with representatives of the Civic Initiative "Save small renters"

The civic initiative "Save small family renters" organized a protest in Zagreb on Saturday regarding the announced legal changes, which represent a change in the conditions for their business.

Several hundred citizens from all over Croatia gathered at the "dissatisfaction meeting" called "Yes to the freedom of work of renters, no to discrimination, bans and taxes that are destroying us!", near Zagreb's French Republic Square.

The protest is a reaction to several Government legal initiatives that should come into force next year, such as the introduction of real estate tax on short-term, tourist rentals, an increase in the flat rate per bed in tourism, the need to obtain consent for an apartment in a building from 80 percent of the co-owners, and defining "hosts" and renters" in tourism according to the proposal of the Law on Amendments to the Law on Hospitality.

Today, the Minister of Tourism and Sports, Tonči Glavina, held a meeting with representatives of the Citizens' Initiative "Save Small Renters", where they discussed the goals of the tourism development management reform and the demands of this citizens' initiative. 

"The decisions we made within the framework of the reform we are implementing are firmly based on the data and analytics of the eVisitor system and it is not true, as could be heard these days in the public space, that they are untrue. The data clearly show that in less than a year, 46 thousand new beds were put on the market in the private accommodation segment in Croatia, and that number is still growing. Looking at the period from 2016 to today, we have an increase of beds in private accommodation by more than 175 thousand. At the same time, since 2018, the number of occupancy days has been continuously decreasing, and this year we recorded only 58 occupancy days of this type of accommodation", Glavina responded to the calls of representatives of the citizens' initiative and added that these indicators mean only one thing - the unsustainability of the private accommodation system. 

At the meeting, the Minister presented the indicators on which the changes that are being introduced are based, among other things, through amendments to the Act on Catering Activities, in which the term "host" is introduced.

"All those who have facilities within the county in which they live, with the exception of those who provide accommodation services in multi-apartment buildings, will be hosts and thus separated from other short-term renters and thus have additional benefits", emphasized Glavina and added that the goal of all changes is not to ban or prevent the business of anyone, but to establish the sustainability of the structure of private accommodation, so that all those who are engaged in tourism today can engage in it equally successfully and competitively in the near future, that is, that the next day they can have an equal or greater number of occupancy days. 

At the meeting, they discussed renting in residential buildings, for which, in accordance with the new Act on Building Management and Maintenance and Amendments to the Act on Hospitality Activities, the consent of the vast majority of co-tenants will be required.

"We are witnessing numerous protests in our competing countries, precisely because of the dissatisfaction of the local population, that is, the deterioration of the quality of life, but also the impossibility of finding a place to live for short-term renting. As a responsible government, we do not want to get into that situation, and that is why we believe that we must take these steps now.", said the minister and added that he believes that co-tenants must have the right to give their consent to the space that is used jointly.  

At the end of the meeting, the Minister pointed out that the Government in its three terms of office has always shown readiness for open dialogue, including in this particular case, as demonstrated by today's meeting, as well as all previous meetings that were held with representatives of professional associations of private accommodation. 

"The fact is that changes are necessary and that for the vast majority of private renters, especially those who are real hosts, the circumstances will not change significantly. We are introducing necessary changes in the tourism system and are moving from the era of constant growth to the era of tourism management. It is not good for data to be presented as it is not or to be used for political contests and to intimidate citizens in the run-up to local elections. The government's goal is to continue to keep the success story of Croatian tourism successful, and that is why I appeal for correctness in presenting messages in the public space and open dialogue" concluded Minister of Tourism and Sports Tonči Glavina. 

Photo: MINTS