Why won’t Barclays let me cancel my direct debit?

The bank insisted I had to tell the ‘merchant’ involved to confirm the cancellationShortly after we cancelled a direct debit, we received an email from Barclays saying we had to contact the “merchant” we had been paying to confirm the cancellation. After complaining, we were told that if we did not do so, the merchant could continue to take a payment. Halifax, our other bank, said the same. BG, NewcastleAccording to the official direct debits website, operated by Bacs, yo