LEDBURY'S MP, Bill Wiggin joined members of the Bank of England team in Parliament to learn more about 'the new fiver', before it is issued on September 13.

Mr Wiggin MP was able to try out the new security features and find out how local businesses and the public in North Herefordshire can prepare for the new bank note.

The new Bank of England £5 note features former Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill and will be made of polymer, a thin flexible plastic.

Mr Wiggin said: "This means that the note is cleaner, safer and stronger. The introduction of polymer banknotes allows for a new generation of security features which make it even harder to counterfeit. The note also remains in much better condition for longer, and The New Fiver is expected to last at least 2.5 times longer than paper notes; around five years."

The new fiver will begin making its way into cash machines and shop tills from September 13. Paper £5 notes will be gradually withdrawn once the New Fiver enters circulation and will cease to be legal tender in May 2017.

A new polymer £10 note, featuring the novelist Jane Austen, will be issued in summer 2017 and a new polymer £20 note featuring the artist JMW Turner will enter circulation by 2020.

Mr Wiggin said: "These notes will include a tactile feature to help the vision impaired people distinguish between denominations. The New Fiver will be distinguishable through its absence of a tactile feature."

The new fiver can be viewed online at www.thenewfiver.co.uk