Lenders won't automatically pass on rate cut - papers

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), the main lobby group representing banks and building societies, said that its members would not automatically pass a base rate reduction on to customers in the form of cheaper loans. That would appear to put it on a collision course with the Government. Alistair Darling has said that banks receiving £37 billion of government funds should maintain lending at 2007 levels. However, the CML effectively gave the green light to its members to disregard the Chancellor's request, saying that it did not make commercial sense to insist or expect that lender...