Matthew Pennycook – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-04-21.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of low long-term real interest rates on house prices.

Harriett Baldwin

According to the latest figures published by the Office for National Statistics, UK house price growth moderated to 7.6% in the year to February 2016, down from a peak of 12.1% in September 2014. A number of factors are likely to have supported demand for housing in recent years, including low interest rates.

The Government has established the independent Financial Policy Committee (FPC) within the Bank of England, designed to monitor risks to the UK financial system and take action to address those where appropriate. The FPC has been given the authority and a powerful set of tools to tackle the risks posed to financial stability from the housing market.