In the next of our reflections from the Fair4All Finance Conference Emma Kosmin, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at Fair4All finance, shares her thoughts on the ‘Shaping policy and regulation for inclusive growth’ panel.
It was a pleasure to support the session on policy and regulation for inclusive growth at our recent Financial Inclusion Conference, bringing together thought leaders to discuss the role of policymakers, regulators, and government in driving meaningful financial inclusion.
The session was Chaired by Mick McAteer, Co-Director, Financial Inclusion Centre, who welcomed our other speakers:
- Chris Pond, Chair, FCA Financial Services Consumer Panel
- James Dipple-Johnstone, Interim Chief Ombudsman, Financial Ombudsman Service
- Fiona Hoyle, Director Consumer & Mortgage Finance and Inclusion, at the Finance and Leasing Association (FLA)
Chris kicked off the discussion by reminding us that if millions of the population are excluded from financial services, then genuine economic growth is fundamentally constrained. His point captured the heart of the matter: financial inclusion isn’t a nice-to-have – it underpins productivity, growth, and social cohesion. In fact, our recent research with WPI Economics showed that improvements to financial inclusion could deliver £6.4bn in economic growth each year – adding up to £25.6bn over the remainder of this Parliament. Chris shared that the Financial Inclusion Commission had heard how a lack of access to car insurance can prevent people from being able to access work, compounding exclusion.
Mick reflected on the different drivers of financial exclusion, including the poverty premium, and how market dynamics can often mean that groups of consumers are excluded by design. He described the cases where transformative change had been achieved in this space in recent decades – the successes he named were driving up access to basic bank accounts, bringing in auto-enrolment into pensions, and capping payday lending. His view was that these changes have all been driven by legislative and regulatory change.
James set out that ensuring the regulatory environment works well is a ‘team sport’, bringing together a family of different organisations. In his view the ideal framework is one where industry, regulators, and consumer bodies operate with consistency and stability. He felt that regulators should encourage innovation, but that when things go wrong the system must be able to act swiftly.
Fiona’s contribution brought us right into the heart of the role of the financial services sector, as she set out that you cannot have financial inclusion without an active, responsive sector. She shared that the FLA’s members want to feel supported to lend responsibly to customers who are currently excluded, and the market needs clear signals from Government and the regulator about the role of credit in people’s lives.
Each panellist brought their own perspective from across sectors, but there was a shared urgency to come together to tackle financial exclusion. The discussion looked towards the Financial Inclusion Strategy being published, as at the time of the event it was expected imminently. You can now read our response, welcoming the Strategy here.
A huge thank you to our speakers and Chair, to those who joined on the day, and to everyone committed to making financial inclusion a lived reality.
