Yesterday's announcement that, in response to the "long-term, terminal decline" of cheque payments, the use of cheques will be phased out as part of a "managed decline", was widely expected in the industry.

However, the ultimate closure of the payment-clearing system upon which cheques rely is dependent on the availability of alternatives to cheque payments for businesses and consumers.

Martin Ruda, managing director of Tall Group, which is dominant in the personalised printed cheque market, said that "a lot remains to be seen" as to whether viable alternatives can become commonplace prior to the 2018 deadline.

"While we are expecting further innovations to come to the surface, such as mobile payment options, there are sectors of society and businesses that display a strong inertia," he said.

Yesterday, the Payments Council said that the payments industry will "have to react positively and take the lead on delivering solutions that suit all customers".

Doubts have been raised, however, as to the establishment of a viable alternative within the timeframe set out.

Andy Blundell, chief executive of Communisis, said that there was a view that the Payments Council may be obliged to continue cheque use beyond 2018.

"Consumers and business continue to find a broad appeal in using cheques to make payments," he said.

"Communisis believes that customer choice is an important factor – the withdrawal of cheques, without alternatives which satisfy the needs of the wide spectrum of users, could lead to consumer inconvenience and frustration."

Meanwhile, Unite has expressed its concern at the development. Tony Burke, assistant general secretary, said that it had a large number of members employed in the production of cheques.

"The decision to phase out cheques could have a significant impact on employment. In addition, many small businesses in the print industryrely on cheques for payments," he said.

It has been said that if you are in your 20s you don’t know where your cheque book is and if you are in your teens you don't know what a chequebook is – this adage reflects the decline of the use of cheques, which in 2000 accounted for a quarter of all non-cash transactions compared with only one in 11 today.

However, cheque use among the elderly and small businesses remains strong. This year, business cheque use is expected to overtake personal cheque. Currently, a total of around 1.2bn cheques a year are used.