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<p>The Government recognises that widespread free access to cash remains extremely
important to the day-to-day lives of many consumers and businesses in the UK. Government
will continue to engage with industry to ensure that widespread free access is maintained.</p><p>
</p><p>The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which Government set up as an independent
regulator in 2015 with a statutory objective to ensure that the UK’s payment systems
work in the interests of their users, is monitoring developments within ATM provision,
and is conducting ongoing work on the impact that changes may have. The PSR has recently
published a summary of their work to date, which can be found at https://www.psr.org.uk/psr-focus/the-UK-ATM-network.</p><p>
</p><p>The PSR has committed to using its powers to act should any of the firms it
regulates behave in a way that conflicts with its statutory objectives.</p><p> </p><p>LINK,
the main scheme behind the UK’s ATM network, has assured us and the PSR that industry
is committed to maintaining an extensive network of free-to-use cash machines, and
to ensuring that the present geographical spread of ATMs is maintained. LINK has announced
plans to bolster its Financial Inclusion Programme, which ensures the provision of
ATMs in certain areas where demand would not otherwise make one viable. LINK has also
committed to protecting all free-to-use ATMs which are a kilometre or more from the
next nearest free-to-use ATM, and to ensuring that any community that loses ATM access
because of a branch closure has a free ATM provided.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, LINK
will set up publicly available monitoring on its website of every area of the country
showing free ATM availability, and highlight any areas where free ATM availability
is lost.</p>
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