Andy Burnham’s approach to housing is coming under growing scrutiny after he became the favourite to succeed Sir Keir Starmer as the country’s next Prime Minister.

In his time as Mayor of Manchester, he has called for lower rents, large-scale council housebuilding, tighter rental sector standards and greater local authority intervention in the housing market.

Speaking at a Resolution Foundation event in Westminster earlier this year, Burnham said: “Our aim as a country should be very explicit: lower rents, lower water bills, lower energy bills.”

He has also backed higher council tax on expensive homes in London and the South East, arguing the current system unfairly benefits owners of high-value property because council tax valuations are still based on 1991 prices.

Borrowing target

Council housebuilding is another key issue for Burnham (pictured). In a Telegraph interview, he backed a £40billion borrowing programme to fund council housing, describing it as the biggest state-backed housing intervention since the 1970s.

When quizzed about the scale of borrowing involved, Burnham said Britain needed to stop being “in hock to the bond markets”.

He, however, later clarified he was not suggesting Britain should ignore bond markets, but argued Governments had left themselves with too little room for large-scale investment.

In the private rented sector, Burnham has combined tougher enforcement against rogue landlords with support for landlords improving standards, while also arguing the sector should move towards a more professionalised model.

Greater Manchester reported a 43% rise in landlord fines to £1.47million earlier this year, with the money reinvested in protecting tenants from unsafe housing.

We are proactively supporting landlords to make improvements.”

At the same time, Burnham announced grants of up to £30,000 for landlords carrying out EPC improvements through Greater Manchester’s Good Landlord Charter, saying: “We are proactively supporting landlords to make improvements and incentivising them to take responsibility for their properties.”

Burnham has also been in office during a period when billions of pounds have been invested in regeneration and residential development in Greater Manchester.