National Payment Plan Consultation Issued by the Payments Council

The Plan will reflect the Payments Council’s core objectives so there will be a particular emphasis on innovation, efficiency, integrity and responsiveness to user requirements.

This will include, for example:

• identifying gaps in the services offered by UK payment service providers and assessing how they can be plugged;
• facilitating an environment that supports innovation and competition;
• moving the UK to more efficient methods of payment and more efficient delivery channels;
• seeking to ensure that current and emerging payment methods continue to operate securely and that effective methods of fraud control are adopted;
• identifying and responding to the needs of all categories of payment service users, and, in particular, ensuring that the payment requirements of financially disadvantaged sections of society are adequately met.

The Plan will lead to further action, including statements of principle and agreements to undertake more detailed reviews of specific issues. Actions will be measurable, with clear timeframes and deliverables.

The Payments Council recognises that the prices charged to users by payment service providers are key determinants of the levels of demand for different payment methods.

However, as this is a competitive matter, issues relating to pricing policies are not within the scope of the National Payments Plan. Interchange fees in the international card schemes are also not in scope; these are currently the subject of scrutiny by competition authorities at the UK and European Union levels.

The Plan also excludes issues around money laundering, as this is a matter for regulation by government, and around branch sharing, as this is not directly payment related.