Ulster Unionist Economy spokesperson, Mike Nesbitt, is calling on the Money Advice Service to clarify their commitment to Northern Ireland.
The Strangford MLA says: “The Service was established by the Westminster Government to offer independent advice to those in need of financial advice throughout the United Kingdom. They are funded by a compulsory levy on the financial services industry, and the NI Consumer Council are clear that of all the regions of the UK, Northern Ireland is the one in most need of this type of support. That was clearly identified several years ago in a detailed Baseline Survey of Financial Capability, which showed how we tend to lag behind the rest of the UK in our ability to make good choices.
“I was tipped off last month that the Money Advice Service was considering withdrawing its staff from Northern Ireland. I spoke to an official on the 28th of November, and am still awaiting his promised detailed response. I have telephoned his number four times in the last two days, at 12.53pm, 3.47pm, 9.24am and 11.45 am, and on all four occasions, I was greeted by a recorded message informing me the opening hours are 8.30am to 4.30pm Monday to Friday!
“If this is frustrating for me, what about those who actually need urgent financial advice? The citizens of Northern Ireland deserve a better service than this. The Assembly debated today the issue of “Pay Day Loans” that can tie people into paying ridiculously high interest rates for relatively small amounts of money. If you want to know how big an issue this is, just type the phrase “Pay Day Loan” into your Internet search engine. Google reports 99,300,000 results in a fraction of a second.
“Debt is a critical and growing issue. We need to do several things to help, starting with the Executive ending our position as the only region of the UK without a strategy to improve financial capability. We also need to hear from the Money Advice Service, who have as much responsibility to serve the people of Northern Ireland as those of Great Britain.”