Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies towards mortgage prisoners of the report by the Financial Conduct Authority entitled Mortgage Prisoner Review, published on 29 November 2021, in the context of recent increases in mortgage interest rates.

The Financial Conduct Authority’s review into mortgage prisoners, published in November 2021, found that the population of mortgage prisoners is varied and complex. There is no single measure to address the circumstances of this population of mortgage holders.

Where mortgage borrowers are in financial difficulty and struggling to pay their mortgage, Financial Conduct Authority guidance requires firms to provide support through tailored forbearance options. The Government has also taken a number of measures aimed at helping people to avoid repossession, including Support for Mortgage Interest loans for those in receipt of an income-related benefit, and protection in the courts through the Pre-Action Protocol, which makes it clear that repossession must always be the last resort for lenders.

More broadly on cost-of-living support, the Government has taken immediate action to help households through the Energy Price Guarantee and the Energy Bills Support Scheme. This is in addition to the £37 billion of targeted support for the cost of living this financial year.