BACK TO THE GOOD OLD DAYS OF 'CASH -FOR-COMMENT'?

As the deadline for responses to the NSW Parliament’s so-called ‘Options Paper’ approaches, Airbnb and Stayz spokespersons are noticeably quiet, yet under pressure in Tasmania they are challenging a pushback against the recent relaxation on housing legislation: any reversal would “hurt” Tassie’s Tourism Industry and “potentially damage iconic events”. No mention from Airbnb’s Brent Thomas of what they are doing to housing supply, rents, community cohesion, etc..

The SMH/Domain have just run articles: How ‘letting go’ and Airbnb lead to “a better life”, and, “how to create an Airbnbable space”. In the ‘readers comments’ section we asked if this was an example of ‘cash-for-comment’ – we didn’t pass ‘moderation’ and our question wasn’t published. Censorship?

Elsewhere: Namibia is going to jail Airbnb landlords who don’t/won’t register, the UK media is reporting on a Sydney Airbnb listing – a tent in a living room – British MPs are launching an inquiry into Airbnb pop-up brothels and human trafficking, plus see how fast and easy it is to fill a home with undetectable surveillance cameras, just in case the inflated income from Airbnb/Stayz clients doesn’t satisfy one’s revenue expectations from residential homes…there’re always porno video sites?

In Canada, apartment owners are working on a class action against Airbnb-type rentals, while schizophrenically there is an appeal here in NSW to allow majority investor-owned strata buildings to use an in-house by-law that would overturn the Residential Development Approval on property, seeing buildings operate as unregulated, unsafe, unlicensed hotels. And any undisclosed financial gain for such a ‘gift’ to Parliament/STR operators would go to…?