It was great to see Wharf Green in Swindon town centre come alive during Wimbledon fortnight. There was live tennis on the big screen, a picnic area with Pimms & lemonade and strawberries & cream, and extra seating for fans to watch the action. There was also free coaching on a temporary court provided by Delta Tennis, with many signing up to play tennis there in the future. This was all laid on by InSwindon, an organisation that manages the town centre on behalf of local retailers. This is exactly the sort of event, combined with the reduced car-parking charges, which is helping to attract additional footfall to our town centre – vital in demonstrating that Swindon is open for business.
Another exciting event happens tomorrow – Big Arts Day at Lydiard Park. Last year was a huge success and exceeded all expectations. Around 5,000 visitors had been expected to enjoy a mix of live performance, demonstrations and activities, but around 25,000 turned up! I am delighted to see Lydiard Park being used in this way. When I was the cabinet member responsible for leisure at Swindon Borough Council, the restoration of Lydiard was one of our biggest projects and the intention was always to make better use of the park. Let’s hope the weather plays along and tomorrow’s Big Arts Day is as successful as the last.
In Parliament we have been debating the Finance Bill, which has included measures to tackle high-cost lending. I am continuing my campaign for greater financial transparency, which is essential if consumers are to get the best deals. It’s often far too complex to make the right decision. For example, if you needed to borrow £100 for two days until your pay day, and you had a choice between taking a loan at 4400% APR, or going overdrawn at your bank for a flat fee of £10 per day, which would you choose? The vast majority would choose the bank’s flat fee, put off by the loan’s eye-watering interest rate. However, because the APR reflects an annual rate and the loan is only two days, it actually works out at £1 per day - by far the cheaper option. But then there’s the hidden charges…..
I am calling on the rules to be changed so that, when applying for a loan, you have to be told in ‘cash’ terms what it will cost, including any additional product fees. We have seen utility bills, credit card and mobile phone bills become clearer, giving the consumer easy access to the information they need to compare the best deals available. This is simply an extension of that principle, and it’s something I will continue to press for.