To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the closure of bank accounts belonging to the Core Issues Trust by Barclays Bank; and what steps they are taking to ensure that bank accounts are not closed as a result of any unfair bias or unlawful discrimination against Christian organisations.
Answered on
16 September 2020
Decisions about whether to provide specific products or services to individuals or businesses remain commercial decisions for banks, building societies and alternative finance providers. It would therefore be inappropriate for the Government to intervene in these decisions.
The Government believes that any dispute arising between financial services firms and their customers is usually best resolved by the parties involved. Should a customer be dissatisfied with a firm’s response to their complaint, then they may wish to consider an approach to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The government established the FOS to provide a free, independent dispute resolution service for bank customers, including eligible small businesses.