Campaign to End Legal Loan Sharking  

Gisela has  joined a broad coalition of citizens groups, campaigners, MPs and celebrities who have called on the government to end legal loan sharking. Currently lenders can charge any price for credit which means some loan and credit companies charge £82 for every £100 lent.   Annual interest rate charges of over 2500% are also now common (despite the Bank of England base rate being just 0.5%).   Borrowing at these rates repeatedly tips customers into inescapable cycles of debt and poverty.   According to the OFT £16,000 of excess profit is made every hour in this sector. Co-ordinated by the Compass pressure group, this new campaign coalition have called on the government to ban excessive prices for credit and provide alternative sources of credit through CDFIs, credit unions and a post bank. The government has pledged to clampdown on interest rates for credit and store cards...