Claims about Manchester’s social housing addressed by mayoral candidate
A Reform mayoral candidate has falsely claimed that Andy Burnham has not built any social housing in Manchester during his nine years as mayor, reports BritPanorama.
Sian Astley, who is standing in the race to be the next Greater Manchester mayor following Mr Burnham’s decision to resign and stand as an MP, stated on the Reform UK podcast on 6 July 2026, “I think there are over 20,000 households on the Manchester housing register, and they haven’t built social housing for decades.”
This assertion drew a response from podcast host Ray Addison, who remarked, “Obviously, he’s been mayor of Greater Manchester for 10 years. One might have thought he’d have made a bit more progress with that.”
However, official government figures analysed by The Independent reveal that thousands of social and affordable homes have been constructed across the region during Mr Burnham’s tenure. Following Astley’s comments, Reform clarified that she “mis-spoke” and acknowledged that while building social housing had “not been the priority for Manchester City Council and the GMCA,” she meant to emphasize that Manchester had not built enough social housing in recent decades.
This remark comes just days before Mr Burnham is anticipated to become prime minister after securing backing from 369 of the party’s 403 MPs, rendering it mathematically impossible for any rival to contest the leadership race to succeed Sir Keir Starmer.
Mr Burnham has committed to initiating the largest council house-building programme “since the post-war period” under his leadership; however, details regarding the funding for this initiative have yet to be disclosed.
England is currently grappling with a significant housing crisis, as over 1.3 million households are on social housing waiting lists, according to Shelter. The charity indicated that at the current rate of building, it would take approximately 119 years to clear the backlog.
According to government statistics, between 2017 and 2025, a total of 18,433 affordable and social homes were completed across Greater Manchester, including 2,368 designated specifically for social rent, as reported by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). In 2025 alone, 611 new social homes were delivered for rent in Greater Manchester, marking the highest annual figure since 2011, as shared with The Independent by the GMCA.
Despite these developments, the region continues to face substantial demand for social housing, with over 97,000 households on waiting lists and more than 26,000 individuals identified as being in priority need of a social rented home.
The GMCA and Mr Burnham have been approached for comment.
