Dear Sarah Coombes,

I hope this letter finds you well and you are now fully settled into your role as MP for West Bromwich, as when you visited us last September you had only just begun your tenure. Today, I’m writing to you as the Chief Executive of West Brom Building Society, to ask for your help and support on a very important matter.

As CEO, I have the privilege of leading a customer-owned business that helps nearly 300,000 people save for a more secure future, and we’ve helped over 59,000 people buy their own home. We also proudly employ over 700 dedicated individuals in our local communities.

At West Brom Building Society, we are required by legislation to get at least half of our funding from our savings members. We use these funds to offer residential mortgages, giving more people the chance to ultimately own their own home and improve their financial wellbeing; in the last year alone (2024), around 47% of our mortgage lending was to those who had the ambition to buy their first home. Cash ISAs are crucial for us, and others like us, representing a significant proportion of savings balances. For the saver, they present an opportunity to provide for their financial future, but do not require them to put their money into equity investments and expose them to the volatility of such investments, particularly if they have need for access to their savings. If we reduce or scrap Cash ISAs, it could make these mortgages more expensive and harder to get, as we’d have to find funding elsewhere.

Removal of the Cash ISA could also be detrimental to the government’s plan to tackle the housing crisis through building 1.5 million homes. “Affordable” homes can only be so if we are able to provide homeowners with mortgages at affordable rates.

The Building Societies Association (BSA) recently shared some eye-opening research:

• A whopping 73% of UK adults with Cash ISAs are against the idea of the Government scrapping or reducing them.
• 90% of Cash ISA savers feel it’s important to get back at least what they’ve saved or invested, which only cash savings can guarantee.
• Almost all (90%) are aware that if prices rise faster than their savings grow, their money won’t go as far.
• Two-thirds (67%) of Cash ISA savers know about Stocks & Shares ISAs, and another 30% have heard of them.

HMRC figures show that nearly half (47%) of Cash ISAs are held by people earning less than £20,000 a year, with an average savings balance of just under £13,400¹. While some argue that curbing Cash ISAs could boost investment in the UK, the Investment Association found that only about £1 in every £10 (11.5%) of UK stocks and shares investments actually goes into UK companies²

As this debate continues, I’m reaching out to ask if you would support Cash ISAs and write to the Chancellor to highlight their importance. Your voice could make a significant difference in ensuring these savings options remain available and continue to benefit our customers and our community.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Best wishes,

Jonathan Westhoff
Chief Executive

Sources:
¹ https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-savings-statistics-2024
² https://www.theia.org/sites/default/files/2024-10/Investment%20Management%20in%20the%20UK%202023-2024.pdf
The percentage of Funds under management going to UK equities was 11.5% in 2023