George Osborne has said in his Mansion House speech that he has no plans to kill off Help to Buy.
The chancellor resisted “ideological” critics and said the government-backed mortgage scheme was working as intended. The Financial Times says Whitehall considered cutting the £600,000 cap but Osborne has ruled out any such change for the time being. However, Osborne said he would give the Bank of England legal powers to rein in mortgage lending to keep “risks in the housing market” at bay. The chancellor referred to the housing market as an “old and very familiar” risk in his Mansion House speech. However, the Financial Times points out that “straws in the wind suggest a weakening of the momentum driving the market”. Mark Carney, the Bank of England governor, said interest rates could rise “sooner than markets currently expect”, signalling a possible increase before the end of the year. He said surveys suggested some slowing in the housing market could reflect prospective sellers holding back properties in anticipation of higher future prices. The Council of Mortgage Lenders has published figures showing first-time buyers are continuing to accumulate mortgage debt to get on the housing ladder just as the South East shows early signs of cooling.
13/06/14 Financial Times 1, 2
Times 2
Daily Telegraph 1, B1, B2, B4
Independent 61
