A total of 48,198 mortgage loans were approved awaiting completion within the pipeline for UK house purchases during January 2010, which is the lowest level seen since May 2009 and the second consecutive monthly drop, according to the Bank of England.

A Bank of England press release said that the decline was thought to be partly due to the severe weather and the removal of the government's exemption in stamp duty tax for cheaper houses that closed on 31^st December 2009.

An industry spokesman commented says that "While bad weather may have been a factor, we have to question and consider the sustainability of the upturn in the uk housing market and whether we have really turned the corner or were the improvements recorded in the markets merely a blip and we still have a way to go before recovery is on a solid footing".

Additional lending figures released by the BoE have shown that unsecured loans lending was surprisingly strong during January 2010.

British consumers borrowed £500m through credit cards, loans and overdrafts, once
repayments were taken into account, which is the highest level seen since November 2008.

The increase was nearly double the £265m increase seen in December, and comes after consumers had repaid more than they borrowed during five of the previous six months.