Jul 13th, 2011
Loan sharks: the campaign goes on
By 38 Degrees team
Two weeks ago, 38 Degrees members were emailing their MPs, telling them to stop “legal” loan sharks exploiting people when they’re desperately short of money. Together, we sent thousands of messages to MPs up and down the country, asking them to take action to stop high street “legal” loan sharks charging eye-watering rates of interest which trap people who are short on cash in a cycle of unpayable debt.
On Monday 4th July, MPs debated how to tackle high-cost credit for over two hours. In the end they didn’t decide on definite action, but most MPs agree that something needs to be done – they’re just arguing about which approach to take. The work 38 Degrees members and others have done has put the problem of “legal” loan sharks firmly on politicians’ agendas. We’ve proved to politicians that there are thousands of us who want them to put a stop to legal loan sharks.
The big high street “legal” loan sharks will be trying to lobby MPs, and persuade them that they don’t need to be controlled. But now MPs know they are being watched closely. They won’t be so easy to persuade, knowing how deeply 38 Degrees members and many others care about people whose lives are being ruined by debt.
The campaign goes on!
You can find the full text of the debate here.
