Archbishop of Canterbury plans credit union for the clergy He said the church was in talks with Association of British Credit Unions Limited (Abcul) to see where they could lend support. Justin Welby, the archbishop, was interested in promoting credit unions because "they are an established route of access to finance," Mr Brown said. "If we can develop the credit union sector that will widen the finance sector more generally," he said. With a more diverse financial sector, there should be less need for payday lenders who extract exorbitant interest rates. Often the problem for credit unions is access and we are thinking of ways we can help. The Government announced an investment of £38m in credit unions in April to help them offer a more low-cost alternative option to payday lenders. Minister for Welfare Reform David Freud said: "Credit unions offer an alternative to vulnerable people who have few safe options to get cash when they need it most. They are the antidote to predatory loan sharks or high-interest lenders. News of the church's plans come ahead of a government summit to discuss the payday lending industry. Payday lenders, regulators, charities and Government ministers will meet on Monday to tackle the "deep-rooted" problems found in the loan industry. Last week the Office of Fair Trading referred the entire payday lending market, worth £2bn, to the Competition Commission for a full investigation. Ahead of the summit, Which? executive director, Richard Lloyd, said the consumer group wants to see more action from Government to tackle the "toxic market." He said: "We want new rules banning excessive charges, a restriction on the number of times a payday loan can roll over and clearer advertising to help people struggling with spiralling debt." Payday lenders have argued they have worked to clean up their act, including the introduction of a new code of practice last year to make sure loans are affordable and give more help to borrowers who are struggling.