Policy paper

Summary of Financial Inclusion Policy Forum meeting 7 October 2019

Published 15 January 2020

This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

漏 Crown copyright 2020

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: [email protected].

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at /government/publications/summary-of-financial-inclusion-policy-forum-meeting-october-2019/summary-of-financial-inclusion-policy-forum-meeting-7-october-2019

The Financial Inclusion Policy Forum brings together leaders on financial inclusion to ensure collaboration across government and with the sector. The Forum鈥檚 fourth meeting was held on 7 October 2019.

1. Agenda items of the fourth meeting included:

  • A presentation led by Fair4All Finance鈥檚 (F4AF) chair Richard Collier-Keywood on the use of credit data and its implications for financial inclusion.
  • An update from the Economic Secretary to the Treasury (EST) on the government鈥檚 progress on protecting access to cash.
  • A presentation by guest speaker Professor Peter Tufano, Dean of Oxford University鈥檚 Said Business School, on his experience setting up a Prize-Linked Savings (PLS) scheme in the United States.
  • An update from the EST on the government鈥檚 work to support credit unions.

2. Key themes of discussion included:

  • A presentation on F4AF鈥檚 research and recommendations in relation to credit data, looking at how to improve the use of credit data to benefit both consumers and affordable lenders.
  • Members of the Forum discussed F4AF鈥檚 recommendations in detail and considered how they could be operationalised.
  • Progress made by government over recent months on access to cash. Forum members discussed the need to preserve access to cash for those who need it and considered the provision of a cash infrastructure in a holistic sense.
  • Reflections on Professor Peter Tufano鈥檚 experience of setting up a PLS scheme in the US, and lessons for the UK government鈥檚 pilot scheme for credit unions. Accounts are now open, and the pilot will run until March 2021.
  • An update on the progress of the Government鈥檚 measures on affordable credit announced at Budget 2018, and a reflection on the importance of the credit union sector.

The next forum meeting is expected to take place in Spring 2020.

Back to top