SCOTTISH Greens have called for a new tax on second homes and Airbnb holiday homes to protect the nation’s Gaelic-speaking communities.

In an amendment tabled to the Housing (Scotland) Bill presently making its way through Holyrood, Green MSP Ross Greer will propose giving ministers the power to levy a surcharge on those buying holiday homes or second homes in areas with high numbers of Gaelic speakers.

Many such areas have been plagued by surging house prices in recent years, with homes on the Isle of Skye averaging £60,000 over the Scottish average, a process Green MSP Ross Greer argues is “one of the biggest threats to Gaelic’s continued existence.”

Urging support for his proposals, Mr Greer said: “Young Gaelic speakers are being forced out of the last communities where it is still the spoken language because holiday homes and Airbnb-style short-term lets have driven up house prices.

“My proposals would make it harder for wealthier people to buy up second homes and short-term lets in Gaelic-speaking communities and in turn make it easier for locals, especially first-time buyers, to secure their own home.”