There is gold in those coppers

ONE test of a person’s way with money is whether they would stop to pick up a stray penny.

A note, sure, a pound coin, a 50 pence or a 20, but where do you stand, or stoop, on coppers?

In favour of picking them up, hopefully. Not just because they can be put into a charity box, but because the continued existence of the coins annoys those in the Bank of England who want to see the back of them.

Ditto shops, who would soon round up prices if coppers disappeared, and the banking industry that wants us all to use contactless payment and internetbased accounts so they can close more branches.

Ruling out any change, pardon the pun, Exchequer Minister Robert Jenrick said coins were “symbols of our identity and links to our past”.

He is right. It is hard to have a post-wedding scramble with credit cards, and think of the sense of achievement one feels on scraping together the price of a coffee from coppers. It is like getting a freebie. Carry on stooping, folks, you know it makes financial sense.