mortgage lending slowed to its lowest level for a year last month as consumers spent a record amount on their credit cards.

The Bank of England reported a fall in lending for the second month in succession, suggesting consumers were becoming wary about taking on more mortgage debt.

At the same time, credit card spending reached a record £12.36bn, although after strong repayments were taken into account, the increase in outstanding plastic debt was only the fourth highest on record.

Total mortgage advances during the month reached £25.14bn, while net lending, which ignores repayments, eased to £8.38bn.