Spain has ordered to block more than 65,000 holiday listings on its platform after they were found to have violated rules. The country's Consumer Rights Ministry said on Monday that many of the 65,935 Airbnb listings it had ordered to be withdrawn didn't include a license number or specify whether the owner was an individual or a company. It also claimed others listed numbers which didn't match those the authorities had.

is grappling with a housing affordability crisis which has sparked government action against short-term rental companies. In recent months, tens of thousands of Spaniards have taken to the streets protesting rising housing and rental costs, which many say have been driven up by holiday lets on platforms such as Airbnb.

Listings have proliferated in popular cities, including Madrid and as well as many other popular tourist destinations.

Minister of Social Rights, Pablo Bustinduy, said: "Enough already with protecting those who make a business out of the right to housing."

Airbnb has said it will appeal the decision. The company said it didn't think the ministry was authorised to rule on short-term rentals and it had used "an indiscriminate methodology" to include Airbnb lets, which it claimed didn't need a license to operate.

In 2024, Barcelona announced a plan to as short-term rentals by 2028 in a bid to safeguard the supply of housing for locals.

The ministry said it had notified Airbnb of the non-compliant listings months ago, but the company had appealed the move in court.

Spain's government said Madrid's high court had backed the order sent to Airbnb.

Mr Bustinduy said it involved the immediate removal of 5,800 rental listings from the site. He said two subsequent orders would be issued until the nearly 66,000 removals are reached.

The Spanish government said the first round of affected properties are located across the country, including in the capital, , as well as in the regions of Andalusia and Catalonia.

An Airbnb spokesperson said the company will continue to appeal against all decisions related to the case.

They added: "No evidence of rule-breaking by hosts has been put forward and the decision goes against EU and Spanish law, and a previous ruling by the Spanish Supreme Court.

"The root cause of the affordable housing crisis in Spain is a lack of supply to meet demand. The solution is to build more homes - anything else is a distraction."

Airbnb's spokesperson added that governments around the world see that regulating the company doesn't alleviate housing concerns or return homes to the market.

They said: "It only hurts local families who rely on hosting to afford their homes and rising costs."

Airbnb has been pushing for an EU-wide approach to short-term rental regulations, which it believes will help make rules more consistent across the bloc.

The company believes this will result in platforms and authorities having clear guidance on data sharing, making it easier for hosts to register with local authorities and meet rules.