Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with retail banks about the importance of ATMs to communities; and what responses they have received from the retail banking sector, if any.

As the Noble Lord is aware, the Government has confirmed that it will legislate to protect access to cash as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill.

Further to the answer given on 26 May, I would also highlight that the FCA published guidance in September 2020 setting out its expectations of firms when they are deciding to reduce their physical branches or the number of free-to-use ATMs. On 23 February 2022, the FCA published best practice feedback for firms that are intending to close bank branches or ATMs to give firms greater clarity on FCA expectations with regards to the quality of analysis and consideration of customer needs. The FCA also shared areas that it expects to see improvements in to ensure closure decisions are taken in a way that treats customers fairly.

With regards to engagement, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available on the gov.uk website.