AMI: Blame culture will not get us out of mortgage crisis

He said: "Now is the time for all in the industry to come together and agree a way forward, not seek to lay blame at each other's door. Instead we have a golden opportunity to address the root cause of the current difficulties. We encourage FSA to apply stricter rules to those seeking to enter the mortgage market in future.

"We do not believe that the focus of regulation and oversight should be on products and loan to value levels. Instead, we need to look more closely at the operation of the wholesale market and the business models of lenders. As the CML said, some lenders mispriced some mortgage products and also relied too heavily on the securitization market for on-going funding.

"Advice is needed now more than ever. The regulator and the lending industry must encourage consumer access to advice and more importantly, independent advice, not restrict it. We need a duty of care to consumers from all within the industry and a commitment to evaluate mortgage suitability based on an overall affordability. This will lead to better outcomes for consumers in the future.

"We look forward to working with all parties over the coming months to develop solutions that provide consumers, brokers and lenders with a market that works equally well for all."