Economy of Wales forestry and fishing together contributed 1.5%. As in the rest of the United Kingdom, the currency used in Wales is the Pound, represented by the symbol "£". The Bank of England is the central bank, responsible for issuing currency, and retains responsibility for monetary policy and is the central bank of the UK. The Royal Mint, which issues the coinage circulated over the whole of the UK, has been based at a single site in Llantrisant, south Wales since 1980, having progressively transferred operations from their Tower Hill, London site from 1968. Economic output per head has been lower in
Royal Mint was worth just 13.5d compared to an English mark which was worth 6s 8d. To bridge the difference between the values, unofficial supplementary token coins, often made from lead were made by unauthorised minters across the country. By 1612 there were 3,000 such unlicensed mints producing these tokens, none of whom paying anything towards the crown. "The Royal Mint", not wanting to divert manpower away from minting more profitable gold and silver, hired outside agent Lord Harington who under licence started issuing copper farthings in 1613. Private licenses to mint these coins were revoked in 1644 which led traders to