After an immediate response from Bacta and operators across the country, the government has reassured the industry that low denomination coins will not be removed from circulation.

 

The two pence piece is staying after an immediate and persuasive response from the industry’s operators and trade body Bacta, who reacted with fierce opposition to the Treasury’s announcement that low denomination coins could be removed from circulation.

So strong was the response, that only one day after the Treasury’s consultation on copper coins was announced, Downing Street made a statement signalling that 1p and 2p coins will be going nowhere.

The government explained the consultation was simply a call for evidence enabling it to better understand the role of cash and digital payments in the new economy. The news of the turnaround was a hugely positive result for operators, who felt the decision would have had serious detrimental consequences for the industry.

“It would have had been the death knell for seaside arcades,” said Lee Stefani of Harbour Lights Amusements in Fleetwood. “We’re fully operational today, and it’s the 2p machines that are being played – they’re our bread and butter. Fair play to Bacta for jumping right on it.”

Bacta’s reaction to the announcement was indeed instant – CEO John White spent the day in television and radio interviews explaining why the withdrawal of 2p coins would “kill the penny falls machine, seaside arcades, and the coastal communities that rely on them”.

Michael Cole, owner of Joyland in Great Yarmouth, whose most popular arcade machines includes two pence pushers, feels any change would affect customer satisfaction as well as profits.

“For people in our industry, whose customers play machines for pleasure, they’re looking for value for money,” he added, “The business does well selling £5 buckets of 2ps where people can play for half an hour. But if you give them £5 of 10ps, the time they spend on the machines decreases dramatically leaving them a little less satisfied.”

Some operators feel the government is too focussed on a cashless economy, and that costs incurred from the last change in coins and notes makes a switch to tokens a bridge too far.

“You’d have to change all the mechanisms again,” said Grant Seldon, owner of Seldons Leisure World in Seaburn. “If the Governor of the Treasury went home each night to find his key didn’t fit in the lock, then had to get a locksmith out every time, he might finally understand the issue.”

The industry’s reaction also extended beyond its own backyard and onto the high-street and the consumer’s pockets, with Stanley Harris, owner of Ocean Amusements in Felixstowe, arguing that the removal of low denomination coins would likely affect the cost of living, leading to an overall reduction in spending.

“Prices are going to be rounded up which means more people will have less money in their pocket,” said Harris, before adding: “This may only mean they have a little less money, but as we all know, a little soon adds up.”

The government’s decision to pull back from their 1 and 2 pence consultation was met with relief by Bacta. Returning from a comprehensive round of media interviews and political lobbying, the association’s chief described the speedy turnaround as a “victory for common sense.

John White reflected: “Coastal arcades across the country will now breathe a collective sigh of relief. Aside from the impact on inflation, the removal of our smallest denominations would have a huge impact on British heritage and the seaside arcades that stimulate local economies and tourism.

“2p pushers are the machines that many people remember fondly from their childhood and can be found across hundreds of arcades across the coast. Doing away with the 2p coin would have meant the extinction of an active British pastime, the arcades that house these machines and therefore the resorts who depend on them.

“We’re pleased that government has seen sense, thousands of families visiting our members venues now won’t be deprived the experience, and critically we won’t be losing a part of our cultural identity.”

A powerful case presented, and at the Treasury, at least, the penny has finally dropped about not dropping the penny.