Cameron rushes mortgage plan launch

British prime minister David Cameron began setting out his stall for the 2015 election by talking up a contested plan to boost home ownership.

Seeking to reverse days of gloomy opinion polls before the start of his ruling Conservative party’s annual conference, Cameron said his decision to bring forward the government’s new £12bn (€8.8bn) mortgage guarantee scheme would be a shot in the arm for would-be home owners.

The scheme allows first-time buyers in England to take out home loans of up to 95% of the price. It will be launched next week — three months ahead of schedule.

The measure has been largely well-received in a country where home ownership remains a goal for most, and it came on top of a Conservative move to introduce tax breaks for married couples.

Rejecting criticism from political rivals and economists who say it risks stoking a housing bubble, Cameron made clear he plans to place the economy at the heart of the next election at a time when data suggests it is growing.

“The housing market is recovering, but from a low base,” Cameron said, saying that RBS, NatWest, and Halifax, all part-owned by the state, would take part in the new scheme.

“Talk of a housing bubble to people here in Manchester or Salford and they would literally laugh in your face,” he added, arguing that the house price inflation seen in London and the southeast of England was not representative of the rest of Britain.

Cameron’s decision to bring the scheme forward by three months appeared rushed, with crucial details unavailable on the eve of its launch.

Trailing the Labour party by 11 points in the latest poll after Labour received a boost from its own conference, Cameron is trying to convince his party as well as voters that he can win outright in 2015 and govern alone, rather than in a two-party coalition, as is now the case.

He said the outcome of the next election was “wide open”, but he had to win back centre-right voters.