Our Chairman Responds To Ill-Informed Daily Telegraph Opinion Piece on Cash

Yesterday this article appeared in the Daily Telegraph.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/future-of-money/people-love-ease-contactless-cards-do-really-want-live-world/

Starting with the words "People love contactless" was not promising - and it got much worse.

Our Chairman responded to the editor of the Daily Telegraph as follows:

Dear Sir,
The article by James Daley regarding “a world without cash” includes some questionable information, with which I must take issue.
For example, Daley asserts “But in reality cash is an incredibly expensive business.”
I don’t know whether Mr Daley devises bus-side messages in his spare time? Such a medium would certainly be very fitting indeed for his statement on the cost of cash.
Specifically, what on earth does the author mean by “incredibly expensive”?
Compared to the NHS? The UK Defence Budget? The cyber crime bill intimately associated with other payment methods? The cost of running inquiries into access to cash?
With no comparative information, Daley’s statement is unhelpful in the extreme.
The UK public must be allowed to judge whether cash is expensive compared to other payment methods. To do so, they need full information on the alternatives, not meaningless assertions by commentators.
Then James Daley uses a graphic of unknown heritage to attempt to illustrate “ the top 10 countries that are embracing a cashless culture”, without any explanation as to how the countries named achieved this dubious distinction.
For example, France is noted as being the 4th “top” country on the graphic. This does not tally with survey results recently issued by the European Central Bank which reveal that, across the Eurozone ( including France), 79% of all household purchases are made using cash.
In fact, the French continue to give cash a warm embrace, Daley’s graphic device notwithstanding.
I could go on but I believe the point is made.
Access to cash certainly needs to be maintained and even improved. The cost in financial terms is one part of the analysis, as is an evaluation of the importance of cash to the UK economy.
Beyond those factors are small issues like personal freedom, the publics right to choose and the entitlement of law-abiding citizens to privacy. Some would regard such matters as of priceless importance.
For everything else, one should of course be free to use a plastic card or Payment App.

Your sincerely
Ron Delnevo
Chairman of Cash & Card World

Wednesday, 15th August 2018

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