I met a constituent facing repossession of his home following collapse of his business last year. He had read newspaper reports of a Government scheme to help prevent repossession of homes. He had tried every avenue, but was unable to find any details of how to apply for this scheme.
The Homeowner Mortgage Support Scheme was announced on 3 December 2008. It was supposedly designed to help some households who experience a redundancy, by deferring a proportion of their interest payments for up to two years.
This flagship scheme for homeowners was announced by Gordon Brown alongside the Queen's Speech. But we learnt last week from Housing Minister Margaret Beckett, that this will only be implemented in April, over four months after the Prime Minister grabbed the headlines to proclaim the scheme.
This may be too late for those being pressed to arrange repayments of mortgages, or other debt secured on their property.
Unfortunately it is part of a pattern. Several schemes have been announced with fanfare to hit the headlines, but months later, have yet to begin. These include the Working Capital Scheme for companies, the Guarantee Scheme for Asset-Backed Securities held by banks, the Internship Scheme for young people, and Recruitment Subsidies to encourage job creation.
Last week we also learned repossessions by Northern Rock rose 63% in 2008 since nationalisation. Government inaction speaks louder than its rhetoric - homeowners need help not headlines.
