Shocking New Figures Reveal Continuing Rise in Home Repossessions in Bedford Area (North Bedfordshire Liberal Democrats)

North Bedfordshire Liberal Democrats <bedford@bedfordlibdems.org>

Shocking New Figures Reveal Continuing Rise in Home Repossessions in Bedford Area

May 16, 2008 4:55 PM

New figures have confirmed a continuing rise in the number of local families who face losing their homes, with 17% more families facing repossession claims in the first part of this year.

The figures released by the government show that 138 claims for home repossessions were issued at Bedford county court in the first three months of the year. The alarming rise confirms fears that irresponsible lending by banks and Labour's mismanagement of an economy fuelled by runaway credit is causing increasing misery for families.

Commenting on the issue, Bedford Borough Liberal Democrat Group Leader Cllr Dave Hodgson said "138 home repossession claims means 138 families facing the prospect of being turfed out of the house they have lived in, often for many years.'

"The boom and bust policies of the last Conservative government saw tens of thousands of people lose their home because they could not keep up with mortgage payments. With over 40,000 thousand households predicted to lose their home this year, it is clear that the current Labour Government's economic incompetence has created a similar situation of fear and misery for homeowners.'

"The Government has allowed the social housing waiting list to rocket while they have been in power, while the credit bubble has saddled many people with mortgage payments they simply cannot make. Meanwhile, Gordon Brown has shown he is completely unwilling to address the problem he has created by refusing to take real action to encourage banks to explore options other than turfing families out of their homes. As a result, confusion and fear reigns for a growing number of families in the Bedford area."