Government action to prevent home repossessions rocketing to politically unacceptable levels has underlined the severity of the approaching recession, but significant doubts have begun to surface.
"Banks said they remained in the dark about important elements," the Financial Times observes. "However, the Council of Mortgage Lenders insisted it would not be a charter for 'won't pay' customers."
The Guardian says the scheme is being launched amid fears that the number of homes being repossessed could rise to 75,000 next year. Eight banks and building societies, covering 70 per cent of the mortgage market, have agreed to participate in the scheme.
The Times illustrates the impact of plummeting residential and office prices by highlighting the demise of Aim, a property investment company reportedly favoured by celebrities. Sir Alex Ferguson and Sir David Frost are said to have suffered heavy losses.
The paper's political columnist Peter Riddell points out: "The biggest worry for ministers now is what to do when, not if, a big-name manufacturing or services company goes bust."
In the Daily Mail, a question and answer panel attempts to get to grips with the implications of the mortgage repayments holiday scheme. It expresses relief that help is being channelled to the middle classes but hedges it with scepticism about details of the deal. "The Tories claimed the scheme was unravelling," the paper says, "with the major banks reluctant to take part."
Bloggers at the Housepricecrash.co.uk website fear that the scheme is throwing good money after bad and are not surprised to see the banks welcoming the government underwriting their liabilities.
Experts are already warning that the proposal would delay repayments at the cost of increasing the size of the homeowner's overall debt. The "rescue plans may provide breathing space but could significantly increase overall debt and lead to negative equity", the Politics.co.uk website cautions. There may be no such thing as a free mortgage.
