Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to support recipients of grants from the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme who are being refused mortgages as a result of financial insecurity following the covid-19 outbreak.

Up to 9 May, £24.5bn has been paid in Self Employed Income Support Scheme grants in total. Across the four schemes 2.8m individuals have received a grant and 8.8m total grants have been claimed.

Decisions concerning the pricing and availability of loans, including application requirements, remain commercial decisions for lenders and the Government does not seek to intervene. For individuals applying for new credit, it remains important that lenders are able to carry out proper checks to ensure that they are not lending in an unaffordable way, especially if, for example, a borrower’s income had not yet returned to the levels it was at pre Covid-19. Where an individual has been refused a mortgage with one provider, we would also urge them to shop around, recognising lenders do not all take the same approach to assessing affordability.