More than half the homes in some Yorkshire Dales villages are now holiday cottages and second homes, figures obtained by Richmondshire Today show.
Richmond MP Rishi Sunak says the growth risks undermining the fabric of local communities, while Upper Dales county councillor John Blackie says there are now too many second homes and holiday cottages in some parts of the Dales.
Official data from the 2011 Census showed that more than a third of homes in some villages were not lived in throughout the year.
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Across the national park, second homes and holiday lets accounted for 22 per cent of the housing stock in the Park, up from 15 per cent in 2001.
However, statistics obtained from Richmondshire District Council suggest the reality in several Dales villages is that well over half of properties are now either second homes or holiday cottages.
In Swaledale, around one in three properties in 2011 were not occupied full time.
But district council figures produced for September 2016 show Muker had 31 holiday cottages and 51 second homes in a village that at the last Census had a population of less than 250.
It is a similar story in Melbecks parish, which includes Low Row and Gunnerside. which had more than 100 second homes and holiday cottages last year, according to the data calculated using business rates and council data information.
The figures reveal that there were more than 60 homes in sparsely populated Arkengarthdale that were not lived in by permanent residents.
In Wensleydale, Askrigg had more than 60 second homes and holiday cottages, while Bainbridge has more than 50 and Hawes 140.
Other villages with high numbers of homes without a permanent resident included West Burton, Middleham and Redmire in Wensleydale, and West Scrafton and Carlton in Coverdale.
Richmond MP Rishi Sunak said the growth in second home ownership was a matter of concern where it “distorts the local housing market and undermines the fabric of individual communities”.
But he added: “We need to acknowledge the contribution holiday homes make to our tourism industry and the many local people who are employed in this growing sector of our economy.
“The key is balance. We need to make sure we build more homes to meet the needs of local people and government, both locally and nationally, is working on a number of initiatives to make that happen.”
Upper Dales county councillor John Blackie said the more homes that were being used as second homes and holiday cottages meant the more homes that were not being occupied by rural families whose children would attend rural primary schools.
He said North Yorkshire County Council had announced the closure of four rural schools this year and the seven primary schools in the Upper Dales had seen their rolls fall steeply in recent years.
“The children haven’t disappeared but their parents have had to vote with their feet and move elsewhere.”
Cllr Blackie said that while studies had shown there was a positive boost to the Dales economy from second homes and holiday cottages, he believed the balance was now ‘way out of kilter’.
“There are two many holiday cottages and second homes,” he added.
Cllr Blackie said proposed changes to right to buy policy, which would allow housing association tenants to buy their homes, is likely to further shrink the stock of affordable housing in the Dales.
“These numbers are a matter of serious urgency that we need to address,” he added.
Officials have previously warned that the increase in second homes and holiday cottages is causing young people to be priced out of living in the Dales.
The 2011 census revealed that the population in the park had stopped growing for the first time since 1970.
It found that the imbalance between the proportion of people aged over 65 (26 per cent) and the proportion aged under 15 (15 per cent) was now significant.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority’s local plan for 2015 to 2010 noted that the the existing open market housing stock remained “very attractive to people wishing to retire to the national park”.
“This external demand pushes up prices beyond the reach of many local families and first-time buyers,” it added.
The plan said that new housing was needed to “meet the projected growth in smaller households, increase the supply of affordable housing, widen the range of stock with modern amenities, and to attract new low impact businesses with high quality jobs”.
Efforts are being made to build new affordable housing which is restricted for local occupancy.
A change in policy at the national park authority last year has resulted in 31 planning application to covert roadside barns into homes being approved.
However, the response to an appeal for sites for new housing developments in the national park received a lukewarm response.
“The children haven’t disappeared but their parents have had to vote with their feet and move elsewhere.”
Cllr Blackie said that while studies had shown there was a positive boost to the Dales economy from second homes and holiday cottages, he believed the balance was now ‘way out of kilter’.
“There are two many holiday cottages and second homes,” he added.
Cllr Blackie said proposed changes to right to buy policy, which would allow housing association tenants to buy their homes, is likely to further shrink the stock of affordable housing in the Dales.
“These numbers are a matter of serious urgency that we need to address,” he added.
Officials have previously warned that the increase in second homes and holiday cottages is causing young people to be priced out of living in the Dales.
The 2011 census revealed that the population in the park had stopped growing for the first time since 1970.
It found that the imbalance between the proportion of people aged over 65 (26 per cent) and the proportion aged under 15 (15 per cent) was now significant.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority’s local plan for 2015 to 2010 noted that the the existing open market housing stock remained “very attractive to people wishing to retire to the national park”.
“This external demand pushes up prices beyond the reach of many local families and first-time buyers,” it added.
The plan said that new housing was needed to “meet the projected growth in smaller households, increase the supply of affordable housing, widen the range of stock with modern amenities, and to attract new low impact businesses with high quality jobs”.
Efforts are being made to build new affordable housing which is restricted for local occupancy.
A change in policy at the national park authority last year has resulted in 31 planning application to covert roadside barns into homes being approved.
However, the response to an appeal for sites for new housing developments in the national park received a lukewarm response.
