§ Lord Molloyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will make available to the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux additional resources for coping with the problems of mortgage arrears and home repossessions.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Trade and Industry (Lord Reay)My department funds the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux (NACAB) and Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) to enable them to provide support services to local citizens advice bureaux which offer advice on a wide variety of problems, including mortgage arrears and repossessions. Grant-in-aid to these two bodies in 1991–92 will be more than £12 million.
NACAB also receives a grant from the Department of the Environment for its part in the National Homelessness Advice Service, which has as one of its main objectives the prevention of homelessness through the provision of expert advice on debt and other financial problems. CAS receives grant from Scottish Homes for work on housing issues.
The Government have encouraged the lending institutions to provide additional resources to alleviate the problems of mortgage arrears and home repossessions. Several lenders have announced an increased commitment to mortgage counselling.