Treasury aims to tackle illegal loans

Mon, 04 Dec 2006

The government has unveiled plans to combat individuals or organisations offering illegal loans.

Ed Balls, the economic secretary to the Treasury and trade and industry minister Ian McCartney have announced the £1.2 million funding pot - which will help to create a taskforce designed to stamp out illegal loan lenders.

The scheme, which the government claims has already recorded success in tackling illegal loans in Birmingham and Glasgow, will be rolled out in Sheffield, West Yorkshire and Liverpool.

Figures from the Treasury reveal that 165,000 UK households turn to illegal loan lenders, which may mean they are not accessing the best loan rates.

Mr Balls remarked: "This important project has helped give victims in the West Midlands the confidence to come forward, an awareness of better ways to borrow and helped us to build evidence against loan sharks to bring them to justice.

"This important initiative will be expanded to other parts of the country also suffering from this blight."

Teresa Perchard, director of social policy at Citizens Advice, welcomed the move, warning that some of the poorest Britons are often taking out illegal loans with poor rates of interest.


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