Andy Burnham has now been asked by the King to form the next government and has spoken to supporters in Downing Street.

“This moment will be a circuit breaker for Britain” he promises, saying “the care of people” will be at the heart of all of his policies.

He pledges to end rough sleeping and build more council homes, while honouring defence commitments

He also promises a 10 year plan for the future of Britain, to be published later this year. 

And he pledges a shorter term breathing space for people coping with the cost of living crisis, in a proposal he will reveal tomorrow.

Our industry has been reacting to Burnham’s move into Downing Street.

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Justin Young, chief executive officer of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, says: “The new Prime Minister takes office at a critical time for the built and natural environment. Increasing the supply of quality affordable homes, strengthening infrastructure, and supporting the transition to a lower-carbon economy will require stable, long-term and evidence-led policymaking.

“A clear opportunity to make a practical difference to people’s lives is to improve the way homes are bought and sold. 

“Purchasing a home should be straightforward, but transactions take too long and far too many fall through with an average transaction period of 120 days and one in three falling through reported in June. Buyers and sellers often face unnecessary costs, uncertainty and stress.

“RICS will assist the Prime Minister to maintain the momentum behind the Government’s recently announced home buying and selling reforms and make their effective implementation an early priority.

“The Prime Minister’s commitment to reinvigorating council house building is welcome, but ambition will need to be matched by delivery capacity. Local authorities will need the professional skills, resources and professional support to turn that ambition into homes.

“Above all, financial investment, both domestic and international is crucial for delivering so much of this. Creating a business environment which promotes confidence for investors goes together with regulatory and planning reform. Clarity and confidence is the motor for investment and results, not just for house building, but across all sectors of the built environment.

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Nick Leeming, chairman of Jackson-Stops, comments: “Andy Burnham takes office having placed housing firmly at the top of his agenda. Building more homes is essential, but the health of the market also depends on helping existing homes circulate more freely, so that more people can make the move that is right for them.

“Our latest research suggests that removing stamp duty costs could bring more than 300,000 owner-occupied homes onto the market across England within less than a year. At the same time, 42% of those whose moving plans have been delayed cited economic uncertainty as a reason. 

“The new government therefore has an opportunity to restore confidence in the market by combining a clear commitment to housebuilding with stable economic management and a serious review of the upfront costs that continue to hold back buyers and sellers. If that can be achieved, we should see momentum return, more transactions progress and more people able to move when the time is right for them.”

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Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark comments: “We look forward to learning more about proposals aimed at addressing current housing concerns. There are many complex challenges that remain regarding the delivery of a sustainable mix of affordable housing across each region.

“Over the coming months, it will be essential that the sector has a clear opportunity to engage with the UK Government on key housing issues, helping to ensure that the manifesto commitment to deliver 1.5 million homes across England becomes a reality.

“Looking at the bigger picture, a diverse housing mix must be delivered with a regional focus and supported by robust local infrastructure. Building homes is the challenge; building well-designed, functional communities must be the goal.”

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Vanessa Hale, chief executive of new trade body Real Estate:UK, adds: “The new PM has waited a long time for this role and we wish him well. Bringing forward the new housing and modern workplaces this country needs also takes a long time – too long. Mr Burnham will know from his time in charge of Manchester that creating a positive climate for investment results in more development,  economic growth and jobs. 

“We can’t wait to work with his administration to spread Manchester’s success to the rest of the country.”

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Rightmove is calling on the government to support housebuilding to have a greater chance of realising its 1.5 million homes target. Rightmove proposes the following:

• Removal of stamp duty for first-time buyers across both new build and resale properties, unlocking greater affordability for those at the start of the home-owning journey
• Govt. to go further with investment towards affordable housing provision, which would also address viability issues for housebuilders to some extent
• Carefully considered and targeted demand-side support measures for first-time buyers

Rightmove’s data shows that the number of new build housing developments coming to market is at its lowest level since January 2017.

Alex Slater, Rightmove’s director of new homes, says: “First-time buyers underpin the whole housing market, but affordability and getting that first foot on the ladder is becoming more difficult. We need a set of reforms that go further, faster and work together, from stamp duty changes to more investment in affordable housing, to give this group a better chance of getting onto the ladder and keeping the market moving.”

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Brendan Geraghty, chief executive of the Association of Rental Living – a trade body primarily for Build To Rent – says:  “The Association for Rental Living (ARL) welcomes Andy Burnham as the Leader of the Labour Party and Prime Minister of the UK. 

“As the representative body for the institutionally backed, professionally managed rental living sector including Build to Rent, the ARL welcomes the Prime Minister’s belief that “everything starts with a good home”, an approach that recognises the critical importance of housing to the economic and social fabric of the nation, something that we have long called for.

“The Build to Rent sector has demonstrated over the last decade that institutional rental housing can deliver additional good homes, at scale and at pace, and is perfectly placed to offer hundreds of thousands more new homes, together with accountable standards, resident trust, public value and investable delivery capacity, in partnership with local authorities and the National Housing Bank. 

“We support policies, together with the pledged stability of politics, that enable the delivery of new homes of all tenures and call upon the Prime Minister to pull the Build to Rent lever to realise the potential of institutional rental housing in addressing the housing crisis this nation faces, once and for all.”