Greater Manchester Tenants Union (GMTU) are holding a demonstration to demand rent freezes from incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham. Principles and evidence alike support their claims.
GMTU’s demo takes place on 17 July at Albert Square at 6pm outside Manchester Town Hall.
The event follows the first ever demonstration yesterday outside the proposed site for Burnham’s planned ‘Number 10 North’. Some 20+ organisations attended, demanding ‘More Than Manchesterism‘.
The new PM officially takes office on 20 June, having waltzed the Labour leadership remarkably uncontested. He replaces woefully unpopular Keir Starmer, who cried goodbye earlier this week.
So much for Number 10 North – top government roles dominated by southerners
Manchester renters message to Burnham
As Burnham swiftly becomes PM, the tenants organisers demand that he:
stays true to his promise to end trickle down [economics] and make life better for ordinary people. One of the most practical, early interventions he can make is on spiralling rent.
GMTU rightly point out that, in 2023, as GM Mayor, Burnham called on the then-Tory government for an immediate rent freeze. He found himself on the right side of the struggle then — but will he now?
With Burnham being handed the keys to Number 10 (and maybe a new No.10 North), GMTU argue:
As PM, he now has the power to do this. GMTU and a range of other organisations demand that he does. The situation for renters since 2023 has only gotten more dire. Three of the areas with the highest post-pandemic rent increases are in Greater Manchester – Oldham, Tameside and Salford.
Many renters, including GMTU members, are “just one rent rise away from homelessness or displacement” from their communities. In Greater Manchester, temporary accommodation has doubled since 2019. In boroughs like Wigan, the average wait for access to social housing is nearly five years. It was reported in 2023 that a Wigan resident was on a council house waiting list for 44 years!
The National Housing Federation even reported that some councils have waiting lists spanning more than a century for social housing. Clearly, the status quo cannot continue any longer. As GMTU state:
A rent freeze, followed by long-term rent controls, are the most cost effective measures for addressing the cost of living crisis and helping to lift millions of struggling households out of poverty. Rent controls are in place in at least 16 European countries. In virtually all of these countries, rents are substantially lower as a proportion of incomes than in the UK. If the government had introduced a rent freeze in 2022, households would by now be saving £2,400 per year.
Manchester tenants organisers launch Resist Rent Rises campaign
Both principled and evidenced
GMTU’s analysis is backed up by the data. Recent research by a range of think tanks and tenant unions has recommended urgently implementing rent controls across the UK. Rent controls are exceedingly popular with the public too. YouGov found 75% of the public support the policy. This included 85% of 2024 Labour voters, 88% of Greens, 65% of Conservatives, 63% of Reform voters and even 44% of landlords.
GMTU spokesperson, author and tenant organiser Isaac Rose told the Canary:
Many of our members have suffered in recent years as rents have risen across our city. This has forced people to cut back, make savings or even move out of their homes to find somewhere cheaper. Burnham has entered office promising an “end to neoliberalism”.
That has to start with policy directly addressing the spiralling cost of rent and basic goods. We call on him to bring a rent freeze in, to bring relief to millions of renters, and send a powerful signal that he intends to “do things differently.”
Homes for Us Alliance organiser, Morven Oliver, also offered the press a pointed quote:
Renters all across the country are struggling with rent increases, and the fear of having your rent raised and therefore losing your home makes it harder for people to put down roots where they live. I work with community groups and tenants unions all around the country, and people are telling me the same thing – we’ve won some decent improvements through the Renters Rights Act, but it’s just not enough. One huge omission is anything to meaningfully address the spiralling costs of rents.
Despite the progress made in securing rights for tenants through the Renters’ Rights Act, the battle for affordability in housing is only just beginning. GMTU and allied organisations launched their ‘Resist Rent Rises‘ campaign in June. We know that they won’t stop until rent controls are won.
The open letter demanding a rent freeze, signed by GMTU and 12 other trade unions and community groups from across Greater Manchester, is available here.
Featured image via the Canary
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