Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the finding by the Financial Conduct Authority that one in ten people have no savings, and what assessment they have made of the implications for national financial security.

The Government is committed to supporting people of all income levels and at all stages of life to save. We know that financially resilient households are better placed to weather income shocks and manage variable incomes.

At the Budget in October last year we extended the Help to Save scheme, which encourages low-income workers to save regularly. The Government also extended the eligibility criteria to include all Universal Credit claimants in work, not just those earning above a certain threshold.

The Government has also committed to publishing a financial inclusion strategy later this year. Savings are part of the terms of reference of the new Financial Inclusion Committee which is supporting the development of the strategy, and the Committee has agreed to focus on emergency savings as a priority.