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Lisa targets loan sharks
WIGAN’S MP launched a campaign to rein in legal loan sharks. She says pawnbrokers and pay day loans must be curbed to avoid Britain becoming a nation ‘in hock to pawnbrokers and legal loan sharks’.
Today Lisa Nandy launched the ‘End Legal Loan Sharking’ by tabling a parliamentary motion calling for a cap on the cost of credit.
And well over 100 MPs are expected to sign Miss Nandy’s EDM 660 in the coming weeks. The parliamentary action comes as there are warnings that affordable credit is becoming increasingly scarce with some financial commentators saying that the situation is now worse than the 1930s.
At the end of this month the End Legal Loan Sharking campaign will meet with key advisers at Number 10 Downing Street to make the case for lending rate caps to cover all consumer credit. Miss Nandy said: “There is mounting evidence that the lack of affordable credit is reaching a crisis point for the most vulnerable in our communities.
“It’s time the government stepped in and protected them rather than allowing them to be exploited.” EDM 660 reads: “That this house believes that the government should end ‘legal loan sharking’ by capping the cost of credit for the whole sector (not just for credit and store cards) and provide alternative affordable sources of credit through the Post Office network, local credit unions, CDFIs, co-operatives and mutuals; acknowledges that the UK’s poorest borrowers pay the highest price for credit in Europe; further acknowledges that to £16,000 of excess profit is made every hour from the sector and that this is extracting wealth from the poorest communities; is concerned that that the OFT’s recommendations including industry codes of practice and financial education – won’t work, and certainly won’t work quickly to reduce prices for consumers.” The End Legal Loan sharking campaign is demanding a cap on the cost of credit because: The mainstream credit market has contracted since the credit crunch and recession leading to a 1930s style credit crisis The payday loan and pawnbroker business is now worth £2 billion per year, money which is being extracted from our poorest communities The number of pawnbrokers has trebled over the past seven years More than half of the users of pawn broking services report that they use them to pay for daily living expenses such as food and groceries The campaign is also running online; thousands of people have signed a petition and emailed Prime Minister David Cameron demanding he take action. The interactive website is available at www.endleagalloansharks.org.uk<http://www.endleagalloansharks.org.uk/>.
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Weather for Wigan
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 23 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
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Wind direction: East
