Mortgage lending improved in December, with gross lending inflated by some borrowers pushing through purchases ahead of the end of stamp duty relief, the British Bankers Association has reported.

Consumer credit was weak, in line with weak retail sales volumes, but savings recovered from a weak November figure, to an above-trend rise.

BBA statistics director, David Dooks, said: “The high street banks continued to lend substantial amounts in the weaker mortgage market of 2009 approving more than 440