Banks to decide childcare options for parents

Banks can decide the hours, location, and type of childcare that working parents pay for under the new guidelines on their dealings with distressed mortgage holders.

A clause in the initial draft guidelines, which would have allowed banks to force parents to give up work if childcare cost more than they earned, has been removed.

However, the final version, published yesterday, states that “the reasonableness” of childcare can be considered by the insolvency practitioner who will act as an intermediary between banks and customers.