Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department plans to take to support credit unions, in the context of the forthcoming National Financial Inclusion Strategy.

The government has committed to publish a Financial Inclusion Strategy later this year to improve access to financial products and the financial resilience of households in the UK. The strategy will address a range of barriers to financial inclusion, including a key focus on how to improve access to credit. This will seek to build on the government’s recognition of the key role credit unions play in serving underserved groups.

The government has made clear its strong support for the credit union sector, recognising the value that credit unions bring to their members in local communities across the country in providing savings products and affordable credit.

HM Treasury is delivering on measures announced by the Chancellor in last year’s Mansion House speech to support credit unions and the wider mutuals sector, including: concluding a call for evidence on potential reforms to credit union common bonds, supporting the industry-led Mutual and Co-operative Sector Business Council, and commissioning the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to publish a report on the mutuals landscape by the end of 2025.