AOC0441

Written evidence submitted by Anonymous

I am a private citizen. I was born in this country, and have worked and paid taxes all my life up to and including retirement from the Health Service. I wish to have my submission on the above subject taken into consideration by the Committee.

Question 1. The current trend is that more and more people are using cash in an effort to budget more effectively, and for its convenience for small sums of money, and where there is inadequate cellphone and Wi-fi coverage, especially outside towns and cities. There is very real concern that the capacity for paying for goods and services may be taken away.

Question 2. The elderly are especially likely to be affected. Budgeting with cash is very important when one has a limited income. Students, people on low wages and others who may not be financially practised in budgeting their spending would also be impacted.

Question 3. Yes. There is a definite need to retain cash in the economy. Particularly, in shops of all types where food, clothing or other essential commodities are sold. Charities and churches would also be impacted if cash were to be removed because people often put small sums of cash into collecting boxes. Children are often given small sums of money as “pocket money”. In learning how to use such pocket money they also learn the cost of things and how to budget. Our children are our future. They need to have the building blocks of learning to manage their finances. It is as important as teaching them how to read and write.

Question 4. Businesses that accept cash do have a challenge in so far as they will need to be able to keep their takings safe until they are able to pay them into a bank. With banks closing branches, this challenge increases. This will impact large and small businesses equally. Government should mandate that Banks and Post Offices will maintain sufficient branches to support businesses with their cash requirements.

Question 5. Businesses that accept cash to face costs for paying cash into banks. However, I understand that even if they pay in electronically there are banking costs involved. Therefore, I feel that the cost involved for paying in cash takings presents no particular difference. If they employ a cash security company to collect the cash from their premises there will obviously be cost involved. This seems to have been adequately managed up until now.

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Question 6. Financial Services firms most usually do their business by standing order payments or DDM. This has been going on for some considerable time now. Some firms may still be accepting payments in cash made through such agencies as The Post Office. I consider The Post Office to be an essential player in the retention of cash since so many banks have closed their doors to actual customers. If any financial institutions are still accepting cash payments, no doubt they will have made their views known to the committee.

Question 7. It is not always practicable or possible to pay for services or items using credit or debit cards. In areas outside the cities and towns, cell phone signals can be patchy, connections to payment services extremely slow or non-existent. I personally have had to use cash for taxi services to and from my local hospital because the wifi and cellphone service is so poor in my part of the country.

Going cashless puts everyone at risk should the network fail for any reason, as has happened in the very recent past. It is a shortsighted measure, and will disadvantage many in society, as well as feed into the narrative of the government wanting total control over the lives of it citizens.

December 2024