In response to the FSA's report showing the number of new mortgage possessions grew significantly in late 2007 and early 2008, with 9,152 new cases in Q1, a rise of over 40 per cent on a year earlier:

Shelter Scotland's director, Graeme Brown, said:

'These figures show that across the UK we can no longer cross our fingers and hope this is a blip. Behind the statistics, are real people, hard working families; young first time buyers, and even renters, living in the shadow of repossession and possibly homelessness. Whilst these figures are not broken down for Scotland, our figures show that more and more people are coming to Shelter for advice about repossession.

'At Shelter we see homeowners owing very small amounts of money, whose lives are wrecked by repossession, or even the threat of repossession.

'We are particularly concerned by the report's new evidence that there is a huge disparity in lending and arrears management practices which leave many homeowners at risk of repossession in cases where a solution could have been found. Eviction must be a measure of last resort.

'The FSA's call for fair treatment of customers is a good first step, but as the regulator it must now put its money where its mouth is and clamp down on mortgage lenders who are robbing people of their homes.'