http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2523474/Brits-holiday-homes-Spain-France-banned-renting-tourists.html

:(

A few years ago, owners of flats and apartments, offered for rent here, were told to register them, for taxation purposes, I persume.
Many people who were advertising on web sites etc. as holiday rentals, stopped doing so, and some even sold the properties and moved away.

The usual thing - cutting off the nose to spite the face.  Less cheap holiday accommodation then the holidaymaker will go elsewhere meaning less tourist income for the countries concerned.

In Ireland a few years ago they brought in a annual 90 Euro rental property registration fee. The following year they deemed these properties to be non primary residences and slapped another 200 on top. This was such a good idea that they slapped a tax of around 450 - 1000 Euro on every property in the country. It is just another way of squeezing money out of people to pay for the excesses of government.
>:(

This is another situation ,(if what has been said is true,) that the local economy ,the small businesses, cafes,shops etc will suffer as people abandon spain and france and have their holidays elsewhere.
if the spanish nation hadnt been so bl##dy lazy in the past and had worked harder at keeping themselves in work,then none of this would be happening,
the country would have been in a better position now,
a few years ago when they started putting barriers in front of everybody that was investing in their country that was the beginning of the end,now everybody has gone home they are in a right mess,
well i say tough !, it serves them right,
there is so much wasted land all over spain that could be utilized to grow produce etc, thats if they can be bothered working it ,
it puzzles me when i am here that nobody seems to do anything,i mean what is a typical working day for your average spaniard,what do they actually do to earn a living ?