London's Affordable Housing Crisis Deepens as Mayor Faces Target Shortfall
Newly released figures indicate that Mayor Sadiq Khan is on track to significantly miss affordable housing targets established by the government for London. The data reveals a substantial gap between projected completions and the adjusted goals set for the current funding period.
Revised Targets Still Out of Reach
The Greater London Authority and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government previously agreed to reduce London's Affordable Homes Programme target for 2021-2026 by more than twenty percent. The revised goal now stands at between 17,800 and 19,000 housing starts by March 2026.
However, according to the latest statistics from City Hall, only 7,878 homes have been initiated under this programme between July 2023 and December 2025. This includes 5,188 starts from July 2023 to March 2025, with an additional 2,690 since that period.
This means that unless there are approximately 9,922 affordable housing starts between January and March 2026, the Mayor will fail to meet even the lowered government expectations.
Political Criticism and Defensive Response
The Conservative housing spokesman at City Hall, Lord Bailey, has characterized the Mayor's affordable housing record as a "failure" and called for government intervention. He highlighted that only 1,898 homes have been completed from the £4 billion 2021-2026 Affordable Homes Programme in a city approaching 10 million residents.
"This is not just a statistical embarrassment, it is a human crisis," Lord Bailey stated. "Families are stuck in overcrowded homes, councils are buckling under soaring temporary accommodation costs, rents continue to climb, and young Londoners are locked out of home ownership."
In response, Mayor Khan's administration has pointed to challenging economic conditions affecting housing delivery. Both the Mayor and Deputy Mayor for Housing Tom Copley have cited multiple contributing factors including:
- High interest rates impacting development financing
- Soaring construction material costs
- Delays caused by Building Safety Regulator requirements
- The ongoing effects of the pandemic and Brexit
Recent Measures and Historical Context
City Hall has implemented several initiatives in recent months to address the housing delivery challenges:
- Reducing affordability requirements for certain developments
- Launching a multi-billion pound fund offering 0.1 percent interest loans to developers
- Prioritizing social rent homes during difficult economic conditions
A spokesperson for the Mayor emphasized that housing remains a "top priority" and noted some positive developments. Housing starts in the 2021-2026 programme more than doubled compared to the same period last year, increasing from 1,249 to 2,690. Council housing starts saw an even more dramatic rise, growing nearly fivefold from 228 to 1,371 during the same timeframe.
The administration also highlighted that 2025 saw the highest number of council homes completed by London boroughs through GLA-funded programmes since 2016-2017. Since 2018, more than 25,000 council homes have been constructed or are currently under construction with City Hall support.
Despite these efforts, the gap between housing need and delivery remains substantial, creating ongoing challenges for London's growing population seeking affordable accommodation options.
