Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to invest in technological improvements to the UK's ATM network.

The Government recognises that widespread access to cash remains extremely important to the day-to-day lives of many consumers and businesses in the UK.

As set out in the Government’s Summary of Responses to the Call for Evidence on Cash and Digital Payments in The New Economy, industry continues to develop a range of ways to safeguard access to cash, from investment in ATMs and cashback from retailers, to shared business banking hubs. The Government supports further industry collaboration to promote innovative ways of managing, accessing and depositing cash. The management and deployment of ATMs is a commercial matter for ATM market participants.

In addition, the Government has invested heavily in maintaining a stable network of Post Office branches, with investment of around £2 billion since 2010. Anyone can use their LINK enabled bank card to take out money for free at the counter of every one of the 11,500 Post Offices in the UK.