PBR: £16 million put into debt advice services

This week’s controversial Pre-Budget Report not only spelt out its aims to help Britain spend its way out of recession, it also included measures to help the rising number of Britons in debt.

Within the £20 billion package, almost £16 million has been marked for debt advice services. £5.8 million will be allocated to the Money Advice Trust and used for boosting phone services, and £10 million will be given to Citizens Advice in order to help them keep three quarters of their bureaux open for an extra of five hours a week.
 
This would enable the Citizens Advice Bureau to help up to 335,000 more people each year.
 
Debt advice services aren’t the only ones who will benefit from the expensive fiscal stimulus: £1.3 billion is going towards helping the growing number of unemployed in Britain find new jobs.
 
The money will be used to expand a service advising on vacancies and retraining. Already 20 employers have promised to automatically grant interviews for those on benefits who will be working through a “national employment partnership.”
 
Struggling mortgage holders have also been given a lifeline through the report, with major lenders agreeing to hold off on the repossession process for at least three months after borrowers first go into arrears. The number of borrowers expected to go into arrears by the end of the year currently stands at 200,000.
 
Let’s hope that these measures will spell better news for Britain’s anxious and indebted than the headline grabbing VAT cut of 2.5%. Seeing as basic food items, public transport, children’s clothes and newspapers are already exempt from VAT, and the cut will only shave a few pence off each purchase, it won’t exactly send people stampeding back into the spend cycle.

Article sourced from www.debtmanagementtoday.co.uk 26th November 2008