Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty has called the announcement of Bank of Ireland branch closures across the country as the “wrong decision” at the worst possible time.
The bank is to shut 88 outlets in the Republic, reducing its network from 257 to 169, while in Northern Ireland the network will be reduced by 15 from 28 to 13.
It follows a deal with An Post to offer customers access to banking services at more than 900 locations.
Bank of Ireland said the majority of the branches that are closing are self-service locations which do not offer a counter service.
In a statement, Mr Doherty, Sinn Féin's spokesperson on finance, said: “This morning’s announcement by Bank of Ireland that it is to close over a third of its branches in the south and more than half of its branches in the north from September is the wrong decision.”
Mr Doherty said while banking is changing, Sinn Féin was calling on the establishment of a future of banking forum to discuss issues such as banking in a digital age and how banks can best respond to serve customers and communities that rely on their services.
He called today's announcement a “knee-jerk reaction that cannot be justified.” He said the bank should reverse the decision immediately and commit to a moratorium on branch closures until the Covid-19 pandemic ends.
He said: “This comes in the teeth of a global pandemic and less than two weeks after Ulster Bank announced its withdrawal from the southern market. It is a huge blow for customers and staff.
Public health regulations
“Bank of Ireland has attempted to justify this announcement based on a fall in branch visits over the past twelve months. This is hardly surprising given the entire population has had its movements significantly restricted in response to a public health emergency.
“In reality, the bank is using Covid-19 for cover, punishing customers for following public health regulations. This is not just a cynical move, but a slap in the face that will hurt customers, staff and communities.”
He said the announcement will further damage communities that have already been economically left behind by government policy over the past decade.
He added: “Research has found that bank branch closures reduce SME lending growth by 63 percent in affected areas, rising to 104 percent when it is the last branch in the area.
“We support the call of the Financial Services Union for a moratorium on branch closures until the end of 2022; once this pandemic has ended.”
Mr Doherty said he would write to the chief executive of Bank of Ireland, the Minister for Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank in light of today’s announcement.
Ulster Bank
The closures come after Ulster Bank’s parent company, NatWest, last month announced that it was withdrawing Ulster Bank from the Irish market.
Bank of Ireland group chief executive Francesca McDonagh said: “Technology is evolving and customers are using branches less, year on year on year.
“Covid-19 has accelerated this changing behaviour and we’ve seen a seismic shift towards digital banking over the past 12 months.”
Ms McDonagh said Bank of Ireland has reached a “tipping point” between online and offline banking, with its mobile app the most popular way to bank. In contrast the number of people visiting branches has “sharply declined” and is now just over half of what it was in 2017.
