It would be good to think that all members of Sustainable Crediton were banking ethically. However, I suspect that a lot of you may still be banking with the big banks - those 'too big to fail' which received our money to keep afloat and are still receiving hidden subsidies. Time to move your money!

According to New Economics Foundation [nef] analysts, there is a range of hidden subsidies that dwarf the Treasury's bank levy and the £300 million put aside for the 'Big Society' bank. They assert that the public is supporting the banks to the tune of at least £32 billion a year, outstripping Cameron's 'Big Society' bank by a factor of 100:1. 

In addition to this, banks, including HSBC and Barclays, are among the companies stashing money away overseas to avoid tax. Apparently the actions of these companies amounts to about £25bn in lost revenue each year. All this money at the rich end of society and the poor are having to suffer cuts in essential services. 

To quote from nef "We don't have to keep our money in the coffers of the big banks. In the USA, the Move Your Money campaign, launched by the influential online news source the Huffington Post, has inspired Americans to move all or some of their money into accounts with alternative institutions."

Here the good alternative places to hold your money are: Triodos and Co-operative Banks, the Ecology Building Society, credit unions and National Savings through the Post Office. Co-op Bank accounts can be operated through local post offices, giving them support, and there's also a new organisation called Zopa for person-to-person lending. 

It's time to change to ethical banking. Changing is quite easy, so why not do it now and feel good about how your money is being used and handled.