The number of mortgages approved for house purchase has dived by more than 60% during the past year to hit a new record low.

Just 17,773 loans were approved for people buying a home during November, 14% fewer than in October and 60.7% less than in November last year, the British Bankers' Association said.

There was also a steep drop in the number of people remortgaging during the month, with just 29,798 loans for people switching to a better deal in the pipeline, down from 52,452 the previous month.

The figure, which was the lowest for eight years, was also less than half the level for November last year.