Yorkshire Building Society closing accounts down on people with views that don't agree with their policy

[Summer2023hasarrived]

So the story goes that if you have a view on Brexit or LGBTQ?+ that isn't inline or in agreement with the people that know what view is right at The Yorkshire Building Society then they can close your account?

AIBU - stick to the day job and provide mortgages and savings

YABU - they can decide if the values of their customers don't align to shut them down

Farage may have lied. As for the others claiming similar practices including the vicar because he complained about the number of Pride flags? Who knows. There are a number of people now reporting similar problems with banks

But your thread clearly states that people are being closed down because of their views?

You read something, it obviously pushed a button inside you, and you reacted and decided to start a thread claiming that this had happened.

It's easy to do. It's easy to read something, take it as truth, especially if it appeals to your beliefs and to spread it.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12264723/Metro-Bank-blocks-gender-critical-parents-opening-account-signing-Stonewall-scheme.html

https://digitaleditions.telegraph.co.uk/data/1386/reader/reader.html?#!preferred/0/package/1386/pub/1386/page/3/article/NaN

More on the parents group who have been refused their account.

So it turns out the whole Farage thing was a hoax, promulgated by Farage.

Why do people believe this crap and believe them enough to start threads on them?

50 percentage of the population have a below average IQ. Or are just too bloody lazy to fact check. Or like the narrative because it matches their world view so don't seek an alternative explaination in case it undermines their world view.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=75i6gsRrx9M

Barristers view.

I see that the BBC report on the issue again this afternoon.

Yeah, politically exposed person does not mean someone who merely has political views. It means they are at a higher risk of being bribed or laundering money. This means additional checks are required to allow them to borrow money/ open bank accounts. It has nothing to do with what their opinions are, but is part of anti money laundering regulations. If it is not clear that their funds are legit, then financial institutions are not allowed to do business with them. Though I believe in Farage's case it is because he was seeking substantial loans without being able to prove he could repay them.

This thread is hysterical in every sense of the word.

Claire Fox said she did not say anything at the time because she was embarrassed.

Oh fgs

If I was a conspiracy theorist (like Farage), I'd begin to think that mumsnet had been infiltrated by motivated conspiracy theorists given the posters who have recently popped up on a couple of recent threads (including this one).

Wasn't Farage's account closed because he had got enough money to have a Coutts account ?

That seems to be the case but being an outspoken person with a large public profile and with people alleging links to dodgy money, whether from Russia or elsewhere, may be in the mix too. Dodgy politician and not enough money are not binary alternatives!!

I'm still waiting for a properly evidenced story, covered across media whether the Mail or The Guardian, of an ordinary person - rather than a campaign group - having their bank to tell them, in the nicest possible way, to sod off solely on account of controversial views whether on Brexit, Gender or anything else.

No Doubt you will be the first to complain when a company refuses to do business with you for your regressive misogynistic views.

Banks are private businesses, they should be allowed to refuse to do business with whoever they want.

Political views are not a protected class, so no, that's not true.

I assume you're assuming "belief" covers political views, but I've yet to see anyone make this stand up in court. Even deeply held philosophical beliefs, like veganism, aren't really protected.

https://www.gov.uk/discrimination-your-rights

Agreed; "religion or belief" was intended to cover people with beliefs that have similarities with religion, but are not organised religion - such as pagans, humanists, atheists and similar.

"Belief" was never intended to include flat earthers, transphobes, anti vaxxers or brexiteers.

No Doubt you will be the first to complain when a company refuses to do business with you for your regressive misogynistic views.

My views are not regressive or misogynistic; you are simply refusing to accept that you are on the wrong side of history.

However, I wouldn't knowingly have given my trade to an organisation that was transphobic or homophobic. If they turned down my business, I'd consider it a narrow escape.

So if your ok if the water company switches your water of because they believe your a twat then

Should they be allowed to refuse black people ? I assume you agree we me not being able to bank

Yorkshire Building Society like most building societies in the UK DID refuse black and Asian people as well as women in the past. That’s why they’re doing this now. As many have created strict rules as a result.

Yet if was just because they are PEP then we'd see as many left wingers as right wingers beign affected.

How do you know they're not? The right wingers (or certain ones) may just be making more fuss about it.

Also, on the whole, leftists are less likely to be seeking to open accounts tailored to the super-rich.

I think a lot of this is just that Nigel F. isn't quite as super-rich as he'd like to be.

😂 you really haven’t been keeping up then
every celebrity is left wing pretty much

every author

most heads of chairtys
most heads of intuitions like universities
most sports people

Well, there's at least one group of people, who usually AREN'T left-wing:

Bankers.

So poor old Mr F lost his bank account and lied. I wonder if he had any sympathy for all those UK citizens living in Europe when his blessed brexit made movement of money between the UK and the EU more difficult and some banks decided to close the accounts of those in Europe. It caused a lot of difficulty for a lot of people.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2020/11/eu-bank-accounts-closed-brexit/