A Treasury Committee has published a report stating “there may come a time in the future” when the government must force retailers and service providers to accept cash, criticising the “completely unsustainable” lack of clarity on the issue.

A Treasury Committee tasked with investigating cash acceptance in the UK has criticised the government’s “completely unsustainable” lack of clarity on the issue, warning there may come a time when businesses must be forced to accept cash.

The committee has been investigating how to protect the rights of vulnerable people who rely on cash as an everyday form of payment, and urged policymakers to improve their monitoring of the area.

 “The Government is in the dark on how widely cash is being accepted and that is completely unsustainable,” said chair Dame Meg Hillier MP. “We are at risk of a two-tier society where the most vulnerable bear the brunt and this needs to be a wake-up call.”

“As a society, we must avoid sleepwalking into a situation where cash is no longer widely accepted. This is the beginning, not the end, of our scrutiny of this issue. The Government needs to take this seriously.” 

The report found the lack of consistent evidence meant it was difficult to adequately assess the state of cash acceptance in the UK, and called on the Government to undertake “vastly improved monitoring and reporting of cash acceptance levels.” 

Though the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Emma Reynolds MP, said in her evidence that the government currently has “no plans to regulate businesses, big or small, to compel them to accept cash,” the committee warned legislation may soon be a requirement.

“Having heard evidence on the impact of declining cash acceptance on vulnerable communities, MPs on the Committee believe there may come a time in the future when it becomes necessary for the Treasury to mandate cash acceptance if those who rely on physical cash are not adequately supported.”