MICHAEL GOVE PROPOSES INSURANCE PLAN TO HELP FIRST-TIME BUYERS

First-time buyers could be required to take out insurance against default to get lower mortgage rates, under plans to boost home ownership among those with small deposits (The Times).

Housing secretary Michael Gove is examining the plans to “repair the broken property ladder and fix our dysfunctional housing market” and is looking at how other countries have allowed more families to get loans without fuelling risky lending and worsening inflation.

Mr Gove’s reforms should also help tenants, making it easier to get a loan for those who can show their regular rental payments are equal to or higher than the expected mortgage payments on their first home (Daily Mail).

POLICE WARN THAT FRAUDSTERS COULD EXPLOIT THE COST OF LIVING CRISIS

The cost of living crisis could be used by criminals to lure potential scam victims, according to DCI Gary Robinson, head of the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU) (The Guardian).

“The next thing I can foresee is criminals using the cost of living crisis to social-engineer people – they might send messages offering rebates on gas and electricity and play on people’s vulnerabilities,” he said.

The DCPCU blocked £101 million worth of crime last year in operations targeting gangs. Its investigations led to 123 arrests and disrupted the activities of 23 organised criminal gangs.

UK Finance always encourages customers to follow the advice of the Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign to keep yourself safe from fraud.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Boris Johnson is expected to sign off plans for a law to scrap parts of the UK’s Brexit deal this week (Financial Times).

The energy price cap could soon be reviewed every three months under plans announced by Ofgem (Sky News). The industry regulator said it was putting the idea out to consultation.

Goldman Sachs will allow its senior bankers to take as many holidays as they want under a new “flexible vacation” scheme designed to promote “rest and recharge” (The Times).

Analysis by the Financial Times shows the UK’s shift to homeworking has made it an outlier among most other advanced economies. Months after the last Covid restrictions were lifted, commuter numbers were still almost a quarter down on pre-pandemic levels.