Government to set up working group on “Credit Crunch” next week.
Housing minister Caroline Flint and Treasury Ministers will be convening a working group with the Council of Mortgage Lenders and industry representatives next week, it has been revealed.
The Government says it will continue discussions on what more the industry could and should be doing to support borrowers in difficulty in line with their obligations under FSA regulation to treat all customers fairly.
This will include discussions as to how the Government working together with industry can address the concerns of homeowners in difficulty.
The Government has also revealed today that it is offering buyers who take up a shared equity loan under its Open Market HomeBuy scheme a cash grant of £1,500.
More than £3m has initially been earmarked for the first wave of grants.
The new grants will help key workers taking up OMHB with the costs associated with setting up a new home such as solicitor’s charges, fees and furniture.
The Government has confirmed the locations of surplus public sector land sites which it says will provide 30,000 new affordable homes.
It says that National Regeneration Agency and English Partnerships will set out the brownfield sites from its programme, such as former coalfields and surplus authority land, that will be used to deliver the homes.
Flint says: "We urgently need to meet the challenges of building more homes. Our plans for public land, and tougher building regulations, mean we can deliver the homes our young families and first time buyers desperately need, whilst protecting and maintaining the environment. It is important that we look at what more can be done to support households most at risk from the impact of the global credit crunch, working closely with the Council of Mortgage Lenders."
