Santander warns of "more challenging" environment as mortgage lending dips

Net mortgage lending fell by £400m which the bank said reflected "management pricing actions" in Q4 2016 which impacted new mortgage approvals.

Provisions for other liabilities and charges increased to £60m, primarily due to an additional PPI, including Plevin, provision charge of £32m.

Adjusting for Banking Reform costs and other provision charges, profit before tax was £582m, up 6%.

Santander says going forward, it expects gross mortgage lending to be broadly in line with the market, with mortgage completions normalising in H117.

Nathan Bostock, Chief Executive Officer, commented: "We continue to help our customers prosper, enabling 4,570 first time buyers to fulfil their aspirations of homeownership and providing an extra £900m of funding to UK companies.

"Looking ahead, we anticipate a changeable and potentially more challenging macro environment, but remain confident of our ongoing ability to meet the needs of our customers and shareholders. Our strategy of putting our customers at the heart of everything we do, coupled with a continued focus on delivering operational excellence, gives us solid foundations to succeed and confidence as we look to the future.”