The UK Royal Mint released the new £10 note today, featuring the country’s renowned novelist, Jane Austen, and a tactile element to support blind and partially sighted users.
Just over one billion polymer £10 notes are ready for issue and will enter general circulation with the old note, depicting the scientist Charles Darwin, which will be usable until spring 2018. The exact withdrawal date will be announced at least three months in advance, a statement from the Bank of England said.
The new Jane Austen note joins the Churchill £5 in the first series of polymer Bank of England banknotes. A new £20 note, featuring the celebrated landscape painter JMW Turner, will follow in 2020.
Bank of England governor Mark Carney said: “Our banknotes serve as repositories of the country’s collective memory, promoting awareness of the UK’s glorious history and highlighting the contributions of its greatest citizens. The new £10 note celebrates Jane Austen’s work. Austen’s novels have a universal appeal and speak as powerfully today as they did when they were first published.
“The new £10 will be printed on polymer, making it safer, stronger and cleaner. The note will also include a new tactile feature on the £10 to help the visually impaired, ensuring the nation’s money is as inclusive as possible.”
The note contains sophisticated security features that make it very difficult to counterfeit. It is expected to last at least 2.5 times longer than the current paper £10 notes - around five years - and stay in better condition during day-to-day use.
Victoria Cleland, the bank’s chief cashier, said: ‘Today is an exciting day. It is wonderful to see the inspirational author Jane Austen celebrated on the new £10, and even more poignant it being launched during the 200th anniversary of her death. I am grateful to the cash industry for their support in bringing the cleaner, safer, stronger notes to the public.’
