Petitions to Parliament · 2019 to 2024 Parliament (archived)

Require all businesses and public services to accept cash payments

25,021 people signed this petition to the UK Parliament after it opened on 24 August 2022; it closed on 10 March 2023. The Government responded on 22 September 2022. MPs debated it in Westminster Hall on 20 March 2023.

The petition

The petition's creator is not named in the Petitions site's published record. Quoted in full from the UK Parliament petitions site.

Require all businesses and public services to accept cash payments

All businesses (excepting internet-based ones) and public services in which monetary transactions take place should be required by law to accept cash as a method of payment

As many businesses and taxpayer-funded public services are increasingly insisting upon cashless payments, it is important that we safeguard against the potential dangers of this practice. It creates an enforced dependency on banks, even though they cannot always be trusted to act ethically, and is a threat to privacy as people cannot make anonymous payments. If we wish to uphold freedom of choice and the right to privacy, it is imperative that we protect the use of cash.

The Government's response

The Government published its response on 22 September 2022; the petitions site lists the HM Treasury as responsible. Its summary:

The Government does not plan to mandate cash acceptance. It is right that organisations choose the forms of payment they accept. The Government has introduced legislation to support access to cash.

The response in full:

The Government does not intend to mandate cash acceptance. The Government’s view is that as technology and consumer behaviour changes, it should remain the choice of individual organisations as to whether to accept or decline any form of payment, including cash or card based on their consideration of factors such as customer preference and cost.

However, the Government recognises that millions of people continue to transact in cash across the UK, particularly those in vulnerable groups, and engages closely with financial regulators to monitor and assess trends relating to cash. Research undertaken by the Financial Conduct Authority found that 98% of small businesses would never turn away a customer if they needed to pay by cash.

The Government has recently introduced legislation to protect access to cash as part of the Financial Services and Markets Bill. The Bill establishes the Financial Conduct Authority as the lead regulator for cash access and provides it with appropriate powers to seek to ensure reasonable provision of withdrawal and deposit facilities. The Government considers that this legislation will support organisations, including local businesses, to continue accepting cash by ensuring they have reasonable access to deposit facilities.

Following the Government’s commitment to legislate, firms are working together through the Cash Action Group to develop new initiatives to provide shared services, such as bank hubs.

HM Treasury

Where the signatures came from

Signatures came from 650 constituencies on the boundaries used until the 2024 general election. The largest number, 178, came from Worthing West.

24,743 of the signatures were from the UK and 278 from elsewhere, by the location signers gave.

Debate in Parliament

MPs debated the petition in Westminster Hall on 20 March 2023. Read the debate in Hansard. House of Commons Library debate pack.

Source and receipt

• https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions/622284.json
  UK Parliament Petitions API · read 2026-10-15 · SHA-256 9ba5e74bddd0a559…
• The petition on petition.parliament.uk

The petition's words are its creator's and the response is the Government's; this site quotes both and gives no view on either. Signature counts can still change while a petition is open. To report an error, send a correction request.