Poor people are penalised for borrowing to make ends meet – a new alliance gives them another way
Karen Rowlingson, University of Birmingham Michael Sheen has just launched the End High Cost Credit Alliance . The actor has supported various charitable causes over the years and is now leading this effort to support alternatives to high cost credit which has increased in recent years, not least in his home town of Port Talbot. The alliance was formed in response to the fact that those on the lowest incomes pay the most to borrow money even where they are borrowing for essentials. This is compared to those on higher incomes who can generally borrow at lower rates for luxuries like holidays and high-end consumer goods. The alliance aims to debate the changes needed to deliver healthy credit, offer solutions, and provide the resources to test them out locally and at scale across the UK. It also collectively calls for changes to policy, regulation and practices to make credit fairer for all. This is a growing problem. Research by colleagues and myself at the Centre for ...