Myfanwy leads fight for free ATMs in Llanelli communities

ATMs that charge people to withdraw their money are cashing in on some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, says Dr Myfanwy Davies, Plaid’s Llanelli Westminster candidate. While there is a choice of free ATMs in the town centre and in the retail parks, people in areas like Felinfoel and Llwynhendy need to choose carefully if they are to avoid paying up to £1.99 for a withdrawal of any kind. In Dafen and Furnace, there is currently no choice other than to pay to withdraw cash.
Myfanwy is worried by the recent rapid price increases on charging ATMs. She believes this development is particularly damaging to families struggling to deal with the recession and to groups like older people and the disabled who do not have easy access to transport. Myfanwy will be working with Plaid colleagues at Westminster to call on the UK government to regulate charges on ATMs that target the most vulnerable in our communities.
Myfanwy will also be working with Plaid’s Social Justice Spokesman, Dr. Dai Lloyd AM and Helen Mary Jones AM to investigate what can be done at an Assembly and local level to protect Welsh communities from unfair charges.
Dr Davies said:
“These withdrawal charges target people on lower incomes who take out less money at once as so pay more as a proportion on each withdrawal. These unfair charges also disproportionately affect people like pensioners whose benefits are paid directly into their accounts”.
“For those who don’t have access to cars and who live in communities like Llwynhendy and Felinfoel where most cash machines charge for withdrawal, this is an additional cost at a time when they need it least. In communities like Furnace and Dafen, there is literally no choice available.”
“Small shops and pubs in our communities provide a vital service and it is easy to see why owners would be willing to host a fee-paying ATM. Nonetheless, my concern is that the charges will place an unsustainable burden on their most loyal customers and in the longer term, introducing these ATMs may jeopardise the future of our key local businesses as people spend less locally”.
“Over the last five years the number of cash machines that charge has increased by more than 18,000 while free cash machines have only increased by around eight thousand.”
“This is an issue of basic social justice. We can’t allow our most vulnerable people to be unfairly targeted in this way and I will be working closely with Helen Mary and colleagues at Westminster to find ways of providing free ATMs across all our communities.”
Cllr. Clem Thomas from Dafen added:
“I am concerned that there is no free ATM in Dafen. We are lucky to still have our post office which has so far survived the Governments’ closure programme but the days of withdrawing benefits and pensions directly and over the counter are long gone.”
“In these difficult times, I can understand entirely why small business people would want to diversify by providing a fee-paying ATM which provides them with up 60p per transaction. It goes without saying that we need to support small local businesses. Nonetheless I am sceptical whether the cost of having a fee-paying ATM in a local business does not outweigh the potential benefit as people who feel they have paid a large fee are likely to spend less in that business than they otherwise would.”
DIWEDD / ENDS
Notes for editor
Myfanwy is campaigning for 3 things:
1. She is working with Plaid’s MPs to press the London Labour Government to regulate ATM charges and the proliferation of charging ATMs.
2. She working with Helen Mary Jones to call on WAG to increase the provision of free machines for example through public service providers such as post office network, local government offices or community centres
3. She is researching into whether planning law can be amended to protect isolated/deprived communities where there is currently no option other than to pay for cash withdrawal.
For a map of ATMs and details of charging in the Llanelli area go to: www.link.co.uk