Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that self-employed people in receipt of Self Employment Income Support Scheme grants are not disadvantaged by mortgage lenders.

Decisions concerning the pricing and availability of mortgage loans remain commercial decisions for lenders, and the Government does not seek to intervene in these decisions. Although the Treasury sets the legal framework for the regulation of financial services, it does not have investigative or prosecuting powers of its own and is not able to intervene in individual cases.

For individuals applying for new credit, it remains important that lenders are able to carry out the proper checks to ensure that these individuals are not lent to in an unaffordable way, especially if for example a borrower’s income has changed as a result of Coronavirus.

Together the three Self Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grants combined provided up to £21,570 of support for each individual and places the SEISS among the most generous schemes for the self-employed in the world. And, as of 31 December, around 2.7 million individuals have made claims totalling over £18.9 billion so far across all three grants. Details about the fourth grant will be announced on 3 March.