Geraldine Coggins:  “Labour has failed in Greater Manchester, providing virtually no new affordable homes. I will end Labour’s developer rip off.”

The Green Party’s candidate for Greater Manchester Mayor Geraldine Coggins, made the announcement today for 20,000 affordable homes in a meeting with housing campaigners.

The pledge will involve purchasing and refurbishing up to 10,000 homes and building up to 10,000 new publicly owned homes. 

The homes that are purchased will be publicly owned, not for profit, not for property developers but for the people of Greater Manchester and rented. Purchased homes will also be made available quickly. Every penny of our rental income will get reinvested, which is not the case for Labour’s private-developer model.

A Green mayor of Greater Manchester will end Labour’s developer-led rip off by setting up a publicly owned provider, Homes for Greater Manchester,  to take housing back from big money.

This new body will combine building new low-carbon homes and using a buy, retrofit, let model to quickly bring empty and derelict homes back into use. 

By contrast, Labour’s model for Greater Manchester has been to hand over large sums of public money to developers in return for little to none affordable housing. 

Under Labour, Manchester Housing Investment Loans Fund loaned out nearly a £billion of taxpayer money, 60% to one developer Renaker which has provided no affordable homes at Deansgate Sq or across Manchester, out of 6,110 homes it has built (source GMCA report). 

Geraldine Coggins, said:

“As mayor, I will deliver 20,000 genuinely affordable homes, overseen by a new public housing body which puts people before profit. Labour has failed in Greater Manchester, providing virtually no new affordable homes. I will end Labour’s developer rip off. 

“For too long, the failing Labour model has put the interests of developers first, the people of Manchester second, luxury flats first, and virtually non-existent affordable housing. I will do things differently. Affordable homes for people. If I am mayor, there will be much stricter lending rules, I will not hand over cash for luxury flats.
 
“The Greens will start a housing revolution in Greater Manchester, real homes, not luxury rip off flats, for families, and house building and renovations of existing homes will kick start a new industrial revolution in Greater Manchester, creating thousands of new jobs and supporting the local economy.”

Further information

More details will be made available when Geraldine launches her manifesto for Greater Manchester.

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The Green Party is today calling on Andy Burnham, who is expected to become Prime Minister later in July, to cut bills by at least £150 before the October price cap, by moving the remaining policy costs and the costs of servicing energy debt off electricity bills and onto general taxation, including wealth taxation.

This comes as households are hit by the steepest rise in summer bills in four years, with the quarterly cap on gas and electricity charges rising by 13%, to the equivalent of £1,862 a year for an average household. According to Cornwall Insight’s outlook published yesterday, it will remain up come October. Typical household energy costs are up by 87% over the five years since the start of the gas crisis in late 2021 through to autumn 2026.  

Dr Ellie Chowns, Treasury lead for the Green Party and MP for North Herefordshire, says:   

“It is simply unacceptable that households already struggling in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis should face being further squeezed by eye-watering energy bills – especially when policy costs on those bills could, and should, be paid through progressive general taxation instead. If Burnham is serious about delivering real change that improves people’s lives now, moving all policy costs off household electricity bills is a no-brainer, delivering immediate relief to families before the winter. 

“Short-term measures must also be accompanied by longer-term action to bring down bills for good – that includes scaling up investment in renewables and green technology, fully decoupling the price of gas from electricity, and cracking down on profiteering to ensure energy giants are not able to rake in vast profits while ordinary people struggle to keep their homes warm.”  

In November’s Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves moved some policy costs onto general taxation, leading to a saving of £117 for a household using a typical amount of energy. The Office for National Statistics credited this move for subsequent falling inflation rates – which fell to 2.8% – in the year to April. But with the average annual household bill going up today by £221, any benefits to households or inflation rates are set to be wiped out.  

Five additional policy costs, including the Warm Homes Discount which provides low-income households with support, are still paid for via bills, accounting for nearly 10% of the domestic electricity bills.

The Green Party is calling on the government to move all of these costs away from domestic electricity bills and onto general taxation, including wealth taxation. This could save the average annual household bill around £120, according to the Electricity Bills Taskforce. It would cost an estimated £3.2 billion, and is a move supported by the Taskforce, a coalition of consumer groups, businesses and academics set up in 2025 to provide expert advice to government on reducing UK electricity bills, including E.ON UK, E3G, End Fuel Poverty Coalition, and Which?. 

The Greens are also calling on Burnham to remove the costs of servicing energy debt from electricity bills and onto taxation, taking off up to £35 per year to typical bills. This is estimated to cost up to £1 billion. 

The Green Party say the additional tax costs could be offset by taxing wealth more fairly, including introducing National Insurance on investment income, in line with employment income. This would raise at least £6.1 billion per year. 

They also point to longer term measures, including scaling up investment in renewables, fully breaking the link between the price of gas and the price of electricity, and cracking down on excess profits in the energy system. According to Greenpeace UK, the share value of just five North Sea oil and gas companies was boosted by £73 billion in the first month after the US and Israel’s initial strikes on Iran.  

In April, the government announced that it would take steps to decouple the price of gas from the price of electricity, but the move has been criticised for not going far enough to properly break the link. According to a report by Good Energy published over the weekend, under the government model the impact could be limited, with savings of £3.50 per household per year. Analysis by Greenpeace and Stonehaven suggests that an alternative model where gas-fired power stations are moved into a strategic reserve, would deliver savings of up to £60 per year for a domestic customer. 

Ofgem will announce the next quarterly price cap level for October to December on or by August 26. 

Zack Polanski, leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, said:   

“Trump and Netanyahu’s illegal war in Iran has left households across this country counting the cost as they face yet another unaffordable hike in their energy bills. This Labour government came in promising to lower energy bills but instead families are struggling to keep up with rising costs, being forced to choose between heating their homes and putting food on the table. 

“It’s time for government to stop pretending there’s simply nothing they can do and act – today we’re setting out how government could cut bills by £150 this winter.”

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The Green Party today announced Geraldine Coggins as its candidate for the forthcoming Greater Manchester Combined Authority Mayoral election. Launching an ambitious campaign the party promised to “throw the kitchen sink” at the campaign just as they had earlier in the year in Gorton and Denton to keep Reform out.  
 
The announcement was made as hundreds of party activists took to the streets to hand deliver their leaflets printed in the hours after the election was announced. The launch was addressed by the new candidate, Geraldine Coggins and Green Party Leader Zack Polanski. 

The launch comes on the back of the Green Party’s recent success in Gorton and Denton, where Green campaigners helped deliver a significant result and demonstrated the party’s growing strength in Greater Manchester. 

Speaking ahead of the launch, Geraldine Coggins said: 

“The Green Party has shown in Gorton and Denton and these last local elections that people are ready for a new kind of politics, one that puts communities, fairness and the future first. We did it in Gorton and Denton, and now we will do it across Greater Manchester. 

“People are feeling abandoned by Labour and want real change to deliver affordable homes, thriving local communities and a healthier environment. They are tired of being told to settle for less. This campaign will offer a positive vision for the future of Greater Manchester and show that Green leadership can deliver real change.” 

Geraldine was elected as Trafford’s first Green councillor in 2018 and re-elected three times since. most recently, securing more than 60 per cent of the vote in her ward. She is currently the Leader of the Green Group on Trafford Council and a member of the council’s Investment Management Board. Geraldine is a published academic with a background in leadership, public finance and strategic decision-making.  

Green Party Leader Zack Polanski said: 

“It’s the Greens v Reform in Greater Manchester. The Greens are growing because people can see we are offering practical solutions to the challenges they face every day. 

“Geraldine Coggins will be a fantastic candidate. She understands the issues facing communities across the region and will lead a serious, energetic campaign to give voters a genuine alternative.” 

The Green Party has designated the Greater Manchester mayoral campaign as a top-tier “surge” campaign, reflecting the party’s growing electoral strength in the region. The campaign will focus on building support across all ten boroughs, engaging communities on the issues that matter most to them, and demonstrating how Green leadership can improve lives across Greater Manchester. 

Hundreds of activists will take part in a mass leaflet delivery operation before gathering for a campaign rally where Geraldine Coggins will be formally unveiled as the Green Party’s candidate. 

The Green Party says the campaign will seek not only to compete for victory in the mayoral election but also to cement the Greens as one of the region’s leading political forces and build support for future council and parliamentary elections. 

Notes to editors: 

1. A high-resolution photograph of Geraldine Coggin can be downloaded here. Photo credit: The Green Party.  
    

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18 June 2026 / 18 June 2026 by Green Party

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18 June 2026 / 18 June 2026 by Green Party

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