Liberal Democratic Party leader, Ed Davey, told observer.
In an effort to improve his party’s fortunes in “blue wall” seats as Tory voters have signaled a willingness to switch parties, Davey said there was now a “mortgage penalty” on some homeowners after the mini-budget. There are now people, he said, who are “worried about how to get by or even afford to stay at home”.
In a speech on the economy on Sunday, he will call for the creation of a £3 billion Temporary Mortgage Protection Fund to help homeowners who have seen a 10% increase in their mortgage payments. He says it can be paid for by reversing cutbacks in bank tax and bank surcharges since 2016.
“The Conservatives have smashed the economy and that has added hundreds of pounds to millions of monthly mortgage payments,” he said.. “Something has to be done, especially for those who are really struggling or at risk of falling into arrears or even facing repossession.
Banks must pay their fair share. We saved them during the financial crisis, so they should support families struggling in this crisis. Seems like the right thing to do.”
He insisted the scheme would be “well-targeted” and target the quarter of households that suffer the most in terms of costs. He said that while that did not help the tenants, the LDP had already backed a series of measures designed to give them more certainty and control over their homes.
The party cited figures that the two-year average flat interest rate has risen from 4.24% at the start of September to 6.55% now, adding an estimated £1,800 to the family’s annual mortgage bill by the end of 2023. About 1.2 million have seen Households on flexible mortgages already have a rise in their monthly payments, while 1.8 million more on fixed-rate deals will expire next year.
“We’re seeing conservatives for life, in all the seats we’re vying for in the Blue Wall and beyond, saying the conservatives were just anarchists,” Davey said. “There is no doubt that all their lives Conservatives are already reevaluating their votes, and a lot of them are coming to us. I think that’s the kind of approach that is needed to help those families. Maybe a lot of them have voted for the Tories in the past. Many Liberal Democrats might vote. But that is it. The right thing to do.”