Can Andy Burnham solve the UK's housing crisis?
BBC News 2026-07-16 05:00:04
Context: The UK is facing a severe housing crisis, with millions of people struggling with unaffordable rents, long waits for social housing, or being priced out of the market. Andy Burnham, who is being considered as a potential solution to this crisis, has pledged to deliver the biggest council house building programme since the post-war period. As mayor of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Burnham oversaw a building boom, but critics argue that serious housing problems still exist in the city region.
Key Facts
- The average house price in England was £300,000 last year, which is almost eight times the average annual earnings of a full-time employee.
- The Labour government has pledged to build 1.5 million new homes in England over the course of this Parliament, but it is already falling behind on this target, with only 204,000 new homes delivered in the 12 months to March this year.
- Council house construction has collapsed across England since the 1980s, with the number of new council homes built in 2025 being just 1,970, and only around half of all councils now either own or build homes directly.
- Burnham's record on delivering new housing in the Greater Manchester city region during his time as mayor was not extraordinary compared with other city regions in England, with 3.8 new homes built per 1,000 people between 2018 and 2025.
- The Starmer government's planning reforms for England, including changing the rules on green belt development, are expected to help increase construction in the long term, but some argue that high house prices, elevated mortgage interest rates, and a shortage of skilled labourers are holding back housing construction by private sector developers.