People with poor credit histories could receive new support to
access banking, affordable credit and other financial services.
-
Lloyds Banking Group, Aviva, Experian, and consumer groups
including Citizens Advice and the Money & Mental Health
Policy Institute to join new committee.
-
Treasury Minister hosts first meeting to
explore measures to support vulnerable people access banking,
build savings and improve financial resilience.
-
Findings will support development of next year's Financial
Inclusion Strategy.
Support for vulnerable people to access banking, build savings
and improve financial resilience is under discussion at the heart
of government today as Treasury Minister hosts the first meeting of the
new Financial Inclusion Committee.
Made up of consumer groups and financial institutions, their
focus on tackling financial exclusion will discuss ways to
provide individuals with poor credit histories access to safe and
affordable credit.
The committee will also identify measures to support the 11.5
million people in the UK with less than £100 in savings limit
their vulnerability to unexpected costs. Such low savings
significantly increase their vulnerability to unexpected costs or
unforeseen life events.
Poor access to the right financial products and services can have
a significant impact on people's finances and wellbeing.
Expanding credit will offer people more choices and help prevent
them from resorting to predatory lenders, such as loan sharks or
other exploitative financial practices.
These strands – access to banking, access to affordable credit
and improving savings – will form part of the Government's
Financial Inclusion Strategy which will be published next
year.
, Economic Secretary to the
Treasury, said:
Being able to open a bank account, build savings for a rainy day
or access affordable loans is vital to helping people across the
UK manage their money.
I want to make the system fairer and more accessible – and that's
what this work is all about.
Helen Undy, Chief Executive of the Money and Mental
Health Policy Institute, said:
People with mental health problems can face major barriers when
choosing, using and paying for financial services. This can
result in many of us paying through the nose for financial
products like insurance, or being effectively locked out of these
services altogether. It's fundamentally wrong that a diagnosis of
a mental health condition can lead to a life of financial
difficulty. That needs to change, so we're delighted that mental
health will be a key consideration in the Financial Inclusion
Committee's work. I look forward to working with the Committee to
address these issues through the new financial inclusion
strategy.
Jasjyot Singh OBE, CEO, Consumer Lending, Lloyds
Banking Group
We're strongly committed to financial inclusion. We look forward
to collaborating with Government and others on the Committee to
share insight and discuss how we can help more people to become
financially secure and empowered to make the most of their money,
now and in the future.
The Committee will include representatives from major financial
institutions such as Lloyds Banking Group, insurance firm Aviva,
credit reference agency Experian, and consumer groups like
Citizens Advice and the Money & Mental Health Policy
Institute, a charity founded by .
Kate Pender, CEO at Fair4All Finance said:
Everyone needs access to affordable financial products and
services to go about their daily lives, manage their money and be
economically active. An ambitious Financial Inclusion Strategy
which covers the whole financial services sector is an integral
part of helping the 20 million people in the UK who are in
financially vulnerable circumstances. We look forward to working
with the Government, committee and industry to make this a
success.
