Scale of mortgage lending in UK ‘unmanageable’

A banking report from Cap Gemini has warned the scale of mortgage lending in the UK is unmanageable and ‘exceeding reasonable limits’. The report says debt is running at 86 per cent of gross domestic product – around £1,200 billion – but 60 per cent is the recommended sustainable upper limit. The report said the main reason for the rise was the uncontrolled increase in housing prices, and mortgages remain a loss leader for banks as margins have shrunk.