Liberal Democrats demand more free ATMS

Citizens of many towns and villages in Neath Port Talbot are denied easy access to their own money from their own bank accounts.

Some places still have post offices, where it is possible to access accounts with some - though not all - clearing banks. But post offices are open only five-and-a-half days a week, and what about the times in the evening, or at weekends, when you need cash? Outside the borough centre, the only possibility is often an ATM (automatic teller machine) in a convenience store which charges £1.50 or more for you to get hold of your own money.

Jackie Radford, a Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Social Justice, and candidate for this region in the forthcoming Welsh Assembly elections, has called for more free ATMs. In government, we would make it easier for councils such as Neath Port Talbot to use the planning laws to ensure that everyone in the borough is within reasonable distance of a free facility to access a bank account.

(See Pick of the Day #35).