Round pound no longer sound

SHOPPERS in Halton are being urged to spend their remaining round pound coins before they shortly enter the history books.

The old pound will lose its legal tender status from midnight on Sunday, October 15, and will no longer be accepted in shops and restaurants.

HM Treasury and The Royal Mint are calling on people to hunt down any remaining coins and spend, bank or donate them to charity.

Those in the borough who find old pound coins after the October 15 deadline can either still donate them to charity or bank them.

The British public have returned more than 1.2bn old coins in the past six months.

Andrew Jones MP, exchequer secretary to the Treasury, said: “The hard work of the British public has paid off and I am delighted that more than 1.2bn round pound coins have been returned.

“Added together, these coins match the weight of around 3,500 elephants or 900 double-decker buses. “That is a lot of coins! “There is still time to get involved and with just a week to go, I would encourage anyone who is yet to do so to dig out their remaining coins before Sunday.”

The Royal Mint’s deputy master and chief executive officer Adam Lawrence, said: “The round pound has been in circulation for over thirty years but, as the deadline approaches, we are keen to encourage everyone to track down their final coins and use them.

“After the 15 October, the 12-sided £1 coin will be the only £1 coin being spent in the UK.

“As the deadline is triggered, we are proud that the security features on the 12-sided £1 coin will help to safeguard our currency for years to come.”

A HM Treasury spokesman said the old coin – which was introduced in 1983 – has become ‘vulnerable’ to sophisticated counterfeiters and as many as one in thirty are thought to be a fake.

HM Treasury and The Royal Mint have partnered with Children in Need and both organisations are also encouraging residents to donate any old coins to Pudsey’s Round Pound Countdown.