With news that the Bank of England has increased interest rates to 5.5%,
Michael Fabricant says "Many home owners in Staffordshire will begin to
feel the pinch now that interest rates are now at their highest since
2001 – and they are likely to rise still higher. I am concerned for
the plight of many new home owners with expensive housing in Lichfield
and Burntwood and other parts of the west midlands who may find
difficulty making mortgage repayments in the months to come.

"This bad news will have been smothered by the bigger news today of Tony
Blair’s resignation, but Citizens Advice Bureaux and other advisory
bodies should be braced for enquires from worried borrowers. I shall be
monitoring my own postbag very closely in the months to come."