Brown to meet bankers ahead of US trip

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is expected to meet UK bank executives today ahead of a trip to the US, sources close to the matter said yesterday, as concern grows over the health of the sector. The meeting, set to bring together the government and heads of Britain's largest banks, is also expected to include regulators, one of the sources said.

Downing Street had no immediate comment, but a spokesman said over the weekend that Mr Brown planned to meet City executives today to discuss the impact of the global financial crisis.

Officials at the Financial Services Authority also had no immediate comment. The Treasury was not available for comment.

Mr Brown who will be in the US until Sunday, is due to hold a summit meeting with President George W. Bush and attend the UN Security Council meeting on Africa.

Concern over the impact of the credit crunch in Britain is growing, and mortgage lenders on Friday called on the Bank of England to increase efforts to ease the impact, warning home loans could halve from last year's levels.

A global lending squeeze has made it harder for banks to raise funds on financial markets, forcing mortgage lenders to toughen up their loan terms and raising the risk of a sharp housing market downturn and economic slowdown in Britain.