Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to (a) help ensure mortgage rate stability and (b) support the housing market.

The path to lower interest rates is through low inflation, and the Government is fully committed to supporting the Bank of England get inflation back down to the 2% target, including by keeping borrowing under control.

While the pricing of mortgages is ultimately a commercial decision for lenders in which the Government does not intervene, our plan is working, and the average offered mortgage rates on 2-year and 5-year fixed rates are now lower compared to their peak in Summer 2023. The Government’s Mortgage Charter - in addition to the significant safeguards already in place - is providing support to vulnerable households; and mortgage arrears and repossessions remain low.

Housebuilding is a priority for this Government. At SR21, we demonstrated the Government’s commitment to investing in safe and affordable housing by confirming a settlement of nearly £24 billion up to 2025-26.

In 2022-2023, more than 230,000 net additional dwellings were delivered and government is on track to meet our commitment to deliver one million additional homes across this Parliament.