22 May 2007
A bill currently being discussed among officials in the EU could see continental companies offering loans in the UK, leading to an increase in competition and the lowering of costs for British consumers.
A spokeswoman for the European Commission told the press: "These new rules will make it easier and more attractive for consumers to shop around the EU and for banks to offer their products outside their home base."
Aimed at loans up to 100,000 euros (around 68,350), the bill would allow lenders from any of the 27 European nations to offer loans to anyone within the EU.
If the bill is passed, British consumers will also enjoy the right to withdraw from a loan without charge -something which is currently already common practice in several European countries.
The news arrives on the day that the British Bankers' Association announced that March 2007's personal loan applications were up on February's statistics, but were still 47 million lower than in March 2006.
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