Chancellor will protect access to cash for two million who rely on it
THE Chancellor will champion access to cash in next week’s Budget after isolated villages and older people were hit by the disappearance of thousands of free ATMS and bank branches.
Rishi Sunak will promise new laws to protect 2m people who depend on notes and coins for everyday spending, as the rise of cashless payments threatens the future of traditional money. Watchdogs could be given the power to force banks to make cash available to people who still rely on it.
Despite an alarming drop in access to cash over the past three years, the Government said it is still used for three in 10 transactions.
Last month a review funded by ATM network Link warned the Government that Britain could become cashless within a decade unless it intervened.
The Treasury will begin talks with regulators and the banking industry to develop new laws immediately after the Budget on Wednesday. The Sunday Telegraph revealed last month that the Treasury was drawing up plans to impose laws similar to those introduced in Sweden to ensure banks provide widespread access to cash.
UK customers were charged to withdraw their own money at a quarter of cash machines in 2019, up from just 7pc a year before, according to consumer group Which?.
Almost 10,000 free ATMS have vanished since January 2018 after steep cuts to the fees that banks pay to independent operators for each withdrawal. More than 3,500 bank and building society branches have closed in the last five years as lenders scramble to slash costs.
Pressure has been mounting on the Chancellor after campaigners said the plunge in availability was primarily impacting rural communities, older people and lower income households.
The Government also wants banks to create a new system to guarantee money can reach the most remote parts of the UK. It will develop the new laws with the help of the Bank of England, Financial Conduct Authority and the Payment Systems Regulator.
John Howells, chief executive of cash machine network Link, said: “There’s a risk that the cash system could collapse within the next couple of years.”
Weekly ATM transactions are already 20pc lower than last year, he said.