§ 41. Mr. P. Robertsasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will institute a special inquiry into the practices of moneylenders and collecting agents in the Sheffield area in order to see what steps are necessary to protect the unwary from paying extortionate rates of interest.
§ The Secretary of State for the Home Department and Minister for Welsh Affairs (Major Lloyd George)The Chief Constable of Sheffield informs me that he has received no recent complaints about licensed moneylenders in the city. I am aware of a recent case in which a collecting agent was convicted at the City Magistrates' Court on charges of fraudulent conversion, and while I see no reason to think that any special inquiry is called for, my hon. Friend's Question will, no doubt, serve to call attention to the dangers involved in borrowing money from unlicensed moneylenders.