A plan to charge second home owners in Edinburgh four times the normal rate of council tax has been halted – after just eight days.

The 300% premium was agreed to be introduced on April 1 by City of Edinburgh, which has a minority administration led by Labour. 

When introducing the tax surcharge the council said it was a bid to get more homes into the mainstream housing market.  

The council defines a second home as a property which is furnished, lived in for at least 25 days during a 12 month period, and not someone’s main residence.

But eight days into the new system, the council announced that affected residents would receive a revised bill charging them twice the normal council tax rate – the same as last year.

Council finance convener Mandy Watt says she’s sorry for any uncertainty caused while further work is done to assess the impact of the huge rise. 

The council said the introduction of the new premium required further work to engage with those affected and consider timing.

They expect this further work could take six months.

Watt says: “This will allow us to engage on the impact of the rise and consider any amendments or exemptions to the policy.

“The rate will remain at last year’s level while we do this. We’re sorry for any uncertainty this has caused.”