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Burnham urged to hike housing benefit bill by ANOTHER £2bn at the October Budget as rent gap hits record high

From the Newshound archive · first published 19 September 2026 · last updated 20 September 2026.

Andy Burnham is being urged to unfreeze Local Housing Allowance at the October Budget, with over 1.1 million low-income tenants facing a record 23.3 per cent gap between housing benefit and actual rents.
Andy Burnham is being urged to unfreeze Local Housing Allowance at the October Budget, with over 1.1 million low-income tenants facing a record 23.3 per cent gap between housing benefit and actual rents.

The Resolution Foundation is calling on Prime Minister Andy Burnham to unfreeze Local Housing Allowance rates at the October 28 Budget — at a cost of up to £6bn — and warns that the shortfall between housing benefits and actual rents will hit a record 23.3 per cent next month. Over 1.1 million low-income tenants are facing a "cost of housing crunch", with a two-bedroom flat in east London leaving claimants £324 a month short. The housing benefit bill has already hit a record £39bn this year, with the Renters' Rights Act blamed for pushing rents even higher.

Fewer than 2 per cent of UK properties fall within the means of renters claiming housing benefit, according to Citizens Advice and Crisis.

In 2024-25, more than half of working-age adults in private rented accommodation receiving housing support were in material deprivation — one in eight unable to afford three meals a day.

MoreThe TelegraphLabour urged to hand housing benefit claimants extra £2bnDaily Mail NewsAndy Burnham urged to increase bloated housing benefit bill by ANOTHER £2billion at the Budget by Labour's favourite think tankThe IndependentSpend £6bn to ‘save’ millions of renters at Budget, Burnham urged
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