DUBLIN (Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said on Friday the central bank was not predicting big falls in house prices, despite having told banks last year to be prepared for falls of up to a third if there was economic turmoil after Brexit.
British media had reported late on Thursday that Carney had warned senior ministers earlier in the day that a chaotic Brexit could lead to house price falls of up to 35 percent over three years as well as spiralling interest rates.
Carney did not directly address the media reports in a question and answer session after a speech at the Irish central bank, but said bank 'stress test' scenarios in which house prices fell sharply did not amount to a prediction from the BoE.
"That's not a prediction of what's going to happen, but that's what we need to do in order to make sure that ... the system is very clearly and transparently ... able to continue to lend," he said.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin, writing by David Milliken, editing by Andy Bruce)