A holiday let owner says he is still receiving booking requests to stay at his seaside getaway during the coronavirus lockdown.

Chris Cornell says he has had two requests from people who are willing to travel from as far away as Hertfordshire to stay in Whitstable.

Such practice is against lockdown rules, with the government warning people to only self-isolate in their own homes.

Mr Cornell said: "They were people who said they were isolating, one from Surrey and one from Hertfordshire.

"They said they had been self-isolating for three weeks - 'can we come and stay in your holiday let?'.

"The problem is people are struggling at the moment. I will tell people where to go - but some less scrupulous owners might think, 'that’s £700 worth of takings I am turning away'."

Mr Cornell - a city councillor - has now called on the local authority to close the Gorrell Tank and Keam's Yard car parks in a bid to stop visitors coming to the town.

"I have heard stories of people coming down early in the morning," he added.

"I don’t think it is as big a problem as others think it is, but I do think the council should be far more proactive in making it clear that we are not open for business to tourists.

"The council should be far more proactive in the way it advertises - you need to get the message out wider than just the local area.

"[Closing the car parks] would not impact any of the local shops - there are plenty of parking spaces off the high street. But we need to be clearer that we are closed for business."

On behalf of himself and his other Gorrell ward colleagues, Valerie Kenny and George Caffrey, Cllr Cornell has written to the authority's chief executive Colin Carmichael.

In a letter seen by KentOnline, he writes: "Whilst we thankfully had a relatively quiet weekend, local shopkeepers reported a substantial and significant increase in second home owners moving in Whitstable last week.

"Many were under the cover of darkness and I have had several constituents report Airbnb properties have been full this weekend.

"Whilst I am aware Airbnb bookings may not be holidaymakers (although the current ban only relates to new bookings) there is a considerable amount of concern that there is a problem which needs addressing."

Cllr Cornell said Keam's Yard car park has - according to residents - been very busy the past two weekends.

"For locals, closing both of the above car parks would not present a problem," he said.

"Local shops could be serviced by Albert Street, Gladstone Road, Middle Wall and Shaftsbury Road.

"Free parking for key workers could continue to be offered here and at the Harbour, although the open nature of this car park seems to have meant less people are willing to park there."

According to Canterbury City Council, only four people have paid to park in Gorrell Tank car park since April 6.

Meanwhile, 91 local residents or businesses have a permit to park at Keam’s Yard and the council says it would not want to displace them.

A spokesperson for the city council said it has three reasons for not closing them.

"Firstly, closing car parks does not in itself stop people coming,” they said. "There is a danger that people will still come, find them closed, and go and park on residential streets nearby. This raises the risk of people coming into closer contact with residents in these streets than they would in a car park.

"Secondly, closed car parks could well result in more people taking a chance and parking on double yellow lines in the town. This increases the risk of blocking access for ambulances and fire engines. It would be dreadful if an emergency vehicle was delayed on a vital call out because someone has parked on a double yellow line, while there's an empty, closed car park just down the road.

"And thirdly, we are committed to providing free car parking for key workers in all our non-ANPR car parks. Closing car parks would make it far harder for these people to do their important work for the community.

"All of this said, we are very conscious that residents are worried about the possible spread of infection and are keeping a close eye on the situation."

Read more: All the latest news from Whitstable