Andy Burnham admits Government cash 'may not be enough' to meet his pledge of getting all rough sleepers a bed by Christmas

Andy Burnham today admitted Government funding 'may not be fully enough' to fulfil his goal of getting all rough sleepers off the streets this Christmas.The Prime Minister made a 'rallying call' for local communities to get behind his plan, which he is backing with an extra £102million of funding from Angela Rayner's housing department.This is on top of the £340million already announced by Mr Burnham as part of his promise to end rough sleeping in England.The PM wants everyone bedding down in a doorway or outside a station to be offered a route out of the cold by Christmas, although it is accepted that not every rough sleeper may take up the offer.Speaking on a visit to the North East on Wednesday, Mr Burnham said: 'The Government money itself may not fully be enough.'So I am saying, putting the call out to community and voluntary organisations – we're at one here in Newcastle today, doing fantastic work.'But we're saying to the wider community, voluntary, and faith sector: come on, let's get behind this. Let's show what Britain can do when we all pull in the same direction.'He added: 'We did it in the pandemic, we can do it again, and it's a rallying call, really, that I'm putting out there today with a lot of Government money behind it.'Andy Burnham admitted Government funding 'may not be fully enough' to fulfil his goal of getting all rough sleepers off the streets this Christmas The latest annual national statistics, published by the Government in February, estimated there were 4,793 people sleeping rough on a single night in autumn 2025 in EnglandAs part of his drive to get all rough sleepers off the streets, the PM will also host a national summit to bring together business, finance, charity and faith leaders to ask how they can help end rough sleeping.But the Tories said Mr Burnham had offered no 'plan for delivery' and 'very little detail' on where the extra cash was coming from.They also pointed to how he 'failed' to end rough sleeping during his time as Greater Manchester mayor.Meanwhile, Reform UK branded 'yet another vague announcement with no substances' from the PM.As Greater Manchester mayor, Mr Burnham introduced schemes such as A Bed Every Night to provide emergency accommodation to those sleeping rough or at risk of sleeping rough.Initially, the number of rough sleepers in Greater Manchester fell, but figures have risen each year for the past four years.Ms Rayner, the Housing Secretary and a close ally of Mr Burnham, told Sky News on Wednesday that this is because the policies in Greater Manchester 'drew in people from other areas'.Mr Burnham himself also defended his previous record on homelessness in Greater Manchester, saying: 'We did bring the numbers right down.'But because we were the only area providing a high level of support, more people started to travel and it became difficult.'The PM pledged as his 'first instruction' on day one in No10 'to end rough sleeping in our country' as he suggested people living on the streets has begun to become accepted over the years. The latest annual national statistics, published by the Government in February, estimated there were 4,793 people sleeping rough on a single night in autumn 2025 in England.This was a new record high and the fourth annual increase in a row. At that stage 43 per cent of all people sleeping rough were in London and the South East.Ms Rayner said she is 'very confident' that enough accommodation can be found to get everyone off the streets by Christmas.She told LBC: 'I'm very confident that we can do that. And working with people like Shelter, working with the charities and the faith sector, working with local authorities, I believe we can do it.'But James Cleverly, the Tory shadow housing secretary, said: 'Andy Burnham promised to end rough sleeping in Manchester, and failed because he didn't do the hard work necessary.'Now he is pledging to end it nationally without any plan for delivery. And as with many of his other commitments, there is very little detail on how this one will be paid for.'Sir James added: 'Labour must come clean on what other programmes they are cutting to pay for this project.'Otherwise, struggling families will fear that yet more Labour tax rises are on the horizon.'Reform's deputy leader Richard Tice dismissed the pledge as 'yet another vague announcement with no substances which uses our most vulnerable for political point-scoring'.'We'll believe it when we see it. Andy Burnham's record on homelessness has left a lot to be desired,' he said.Liberal Democrat housing spokesman Gideon Amos said 'sticking plasters won't fix the homelessness crisis', adding: 'Liberal Democrats have called for a legal 'somewhere safe to stay' duty and for councils to be given the ringfenced funding they need to give everyone a real, lasting route off the streets.'Fundamentally, the homelessness crisis goes hand in hand with the housing crisis – so it's time for Andy Burnham to commit to the ambitious target Liberal Democrats have put forward to build 150,000 social homes per year.'Mr Burnham has announced an additional £102 million, from uncommitted budgets within the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), to go towards immediate routes for people off the street this winter.This includes an £8.4million boost to the Ending Homelessness in Communities Fund, in recognition of the work of charities, faith groups and community organisations in this area.The £102million will go alongside the £340million announced last month in funding for new support to get long-term rough sleepers into settled accommodation.