Campaign backed by MPs, charities, unions and the British public supported by over 296,000 people.
A letter calling for the government to protect the status of cash as legal tender has been handed over to the Chancellor of the Exchequer following a campaign by GB News.
The ‘Don’t Kill Cash’ campaign, launched by The People’s Channel in July, has been signed by nearly 300,000 people.
The petition presses the Government to ensure people can still use cash as a means of payment as GB News continues to fight to protect vulnerable Britons who rely on cash and are being left behind.
Within the letter, which was handed over by five GB News presenters, Jeremy Hunt was told:
“Millions of people, many of them the oldest and most vulnerable in our society, face the chilling prospect of being denied access to basic services and shops.
“We all understand change is necessary, but we fear they will be perilously cut adrift if the march of technology turns into a sprint, leading us too quickly towards a cashless society.
“Our campaign has been backed by MPs from all parties, charities, unions, and most importantly, the British public.”
Earlier in the day a giant inflatable piggy bank was unveiled on the banks of the Thames by Economics and Business Editor Liam Halligan.
“A little more than a month ago GB News launched our ‘Don’t Kill Cash’ campaign. Why did we do that? We know that over a million households in this country don’t have a bank account,” he said.
“They don’t have debit cards. We know that five million Brits rely on cash each day to fulfil basic needs. We know that increasing numbers of shops don’t want to take cash, they don’t want the cash handling fees.
“We know that lots of the tech giants want to monitor everything we do via our debit cards and then they can sell that information.
Speaking to GB news live from Downing Street, Presenter Michelle Dewberry said she and her colleagues were there to represent “all of those people who want the ability to spend their money.”
“They go to work, they get their money. They graft hard and want the ability to spend their money wherever and however they choose.
“Some people are not on board with electronics: they just want to be able to deal with the legal tender in this country.”
Fellow GB News presenter Nigel Farage has accused British banks of “relentlessly driving Britain towards a cashless society,”
The former MEP, who hit the headlines after it was revealed he was de-banked by Coutts over his political views, says: “Keeping cash as legal tender is vital because a cashless UK would be the first step towards a fully digitised economy with control over our spending and a huge potential loss of freedom.”
