SCOTTISH Labour leader Richard Leonard has called on MSPs to back a campaign to stop RBS from closing more than a third of its branches.
He lodged a motion for debate in the Scottish Parliament, urging members to get behind calls for the UK Government to intervene.
RBS announced plans to close 62 branches in Scotland with the loss of 158 jobs, in a move driven by the fact more people are choosing to bank online or on mobile phones. The state-backed lender also plans to close 197 NatWest branches in England and Wales by mid-2018.
Trade union Unite described the decision as “morally bankrupt”.
Leonard said the closures went against the bank’s 2010 promise not to shut branches if they were the last bank in town.
He said: “It will lead to the direct loss of more than a hundred of jobs – and the indirect loss of many more. It will hurt the elderly and the vulnerable, who depend on local banks the most. The people of the UK own a majority of RBS and – if RBS bosses won’t listen to reason – the UK Government must intervene to stop these closures.”
Unite has called on the Scottish Government to act to convince the bank to change course. Business minister Paul Wheelhouse said legal and regulatory powers over banking were reserved but he was seeking a meeting with RBS and the UK Government as “a matter of urgency”.
The Treasury has said branch closures were commercial decisions in which it did not intervene.
A spokeswoman for RBS said the majority of branches closing in Scotland (72%) would have either a community banker or mobile branch stop available.
She said: “We have listened closely to feedback from local communities and have extended the time between announcing our decision and the branch closure to six months.
“This has been done in order to ensure our customers have time to consider the right banking options for them.
“Customers will also have a range of alternative ways to bank, including online and mobile for simple transactions, telephony and webchat for assisted help, and the Post Office for face-to-face interactions.”
ends
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel