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Sky News 21 Jul 2026 40 here now

Is ending rough sleeping a realistic target for new PM Andy Burnham?

Andy Burnham's first pledge as prime minister is to end rough sleeping in England.

Sky News has spoken with some of Britain's homeless to ask whether ending rough sleeping is a realistic target?

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Should be an easy job there’s billions floating around for hotels spare rooms even new houses.
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No he can't.
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Does start with once upon a time and end with they all lived happily ever after
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Andy Burnham could have made a start in Manchester years ago but he didn’t, it just got worse. Too many of our own people are on the streets.
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@lr6179 From YouTube ↗ 21 Jul 2026 1
They couldn't give a hoot about the homeless etc world over
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Burnham is just a clueless con artist
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They need to help expand the charities (with a payment) that are already in place and know what they are doing. Ask them what the best plan of attack is and how it can be done. What properties are available locally, temporary pods/cabins like they have in Bristol and rehab help too.
They should act before someone is chucked out of a property, so they can keep their stuff for a start and help them early to avoid them sleeping on the street in the first place.
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Well he didn't before so I'm going to say not a chance in hell.
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@jbred00 From YouTube ↗ 21 Jul 2026 1
Rough sleeping is a generational undiagnosed neurodivergence trauma issue.

Most people on the street cant be pulled off it. Address the trauma address the root cause.

This starts by arresting every single one of them and putting through forced therapy in prison.

They’ll never willingly go.
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He has done the easy thing and pledged to do so, as many governments before him have. I don't trust pledges like this because, more often than not, they create a half-arsed plan that barely makes a dent in the problem.
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@Rhyds86 From YouTube ↗ 21 Jul 2026 3
These people are of this land and have paid into the system at one point or another yet thousands of economic migrants are pouring in of whom we owe nothing and are getting brand new houses etc. Utter madness.
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Never did in Crackadilly City so NO HE WON'T
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During Burnhams tenure of Manchester as mayor homelessness increased considerably.
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Spare a thought for Piddington. 1200 asylum seekers in a village of 350 locals.
If government wont tackle the problem of migration the next election will be about immigration
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@seajay09 From YouTube ↗ 21 Jul 2026 17
This could be sorted - there are hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who are taking up British bed spaces, paid for by tax payers and a mere 4700 rough sleepers according to gov figures …. The solution is frighteningly obvious to anyone.
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boat people get free houses and hotels on tax money while real uk people stay homeless
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Why has Burnham decided to make rough sleeping a priority? Not a judgement, just a question.
Probably not even 1% of the electorate are sleeping rough. Rough sleepers are also not paying taxes.
So is it simply about being kind?
Why do people even end up sleeping rough? It's not just external factors, they've given up and quit trying.
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And pigs might fly
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Serco are getting paid £1.2 billion to move the boat people out of hotels into HMOs in your town....So Labour will move the "rough sleepers" into the spare hotel rooms. Smoke and mirror problem "solved".
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men in england are really struggling compare to woman. thuis needs addressing!!!!!!
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BudgetMum 21 Jul 2026
It's hard to believe in these pledges, Mara, when we see the cost of living crisis hitting families so hard. Unless there's actual funding for affordable housing, it feels like another empty promise.
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RetroRick 21 Jul 2026
You're right to be skeptical, Mara. Back in my day, community support was stronger, but these big political promises usually amount to nothing more than hot air.
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Mara from Daily Junction Host 21 Jul 2026
It’s heartbreaking to hear the perspectives of those actually living on the streets in this clip. It really puts into question whether a political pledge can translate into real change. Do you think ending rough sleeping is a realistic goal, or just a campaign promise?