16 October 2019 – today’s press release

By Mark Valladares | Wed 16th October 2019 - 11:52 pm

MP launches “Save Our Rural Banks” Campaign

Jane Dodds MP has launched a new campaign aimed at protecting existing rural banking services and restoring banking services to communities across Brecon & Radnorshire.

Over the past few years, many communities across Brecon and Radnorshire have seen bank branches in their towns close. Recent announcements by Barclays also reveal plans to reduce banking services available through the Post Office.

At present towns like Knighton, Crickhowell and Hay-on-Wye both do not have any bank branches in the towns, while towns like Ystradgynlais are reliant upon a single branch.

Jane Dodds, Liberal Democrat MP for Brecon and Radnorshire, said:

We know how vital access to banking is, especially in rural areas like ours. When the Barclays branch in Hay closed in mid-2018 we were assured that customers could still access facilities through the Post Office, but now these are slowly being withdrawn too.

I have written to Barclays to get an urgent meeting about this, but the fight does not stop there. We need to keep fighting for our areas, to ensure everyone has access to banking facilities and free to use cash machines close to where they live.

All of this is why I am launching my new “Save Our Rural Banks” campaign. We need to end the string of closures and cuts to services, instead ensuring banks are working with our communities to provide these vital services.

I want to explore how banks can be forced to provide their services in joined-up community hubs based in our Post Offices. This idea would massively reduce the number of communities left without access to banking services and is currently being spoken about in Scotland.

Please join my campaign to protect our rural banks and demand better for our communities.

3 Comments

nigel hunter 17th Oct '19 - 1:11am

Why are Barclays withdrawing from Post Offices? A bank branch could be put into supermarkets or main shops. Does Barclays think P.O. is a competitor to stamp out?
Ian Sanderson (RM3) 17th Oct '19 - 9:57am

As I understand it, I can at present queue up at the counter at my local post office (the last survivor of 5 in my London suburban ward), present my Barclays (or any other bank) debit card and withdraw cash. Is this the facility being withdrawn? I usually do this when I am already at the counter paying for another service withe debit card. How do Barclays know that the debit card use was for cash, or, say, buying stamps?
Richard Underhill 17th Oct '19 - 10:46am

Supermarkets provide cash back at the tills.
Investment advice is only information and can be provided by other means.
Retailers such as Tesco, Marks and Spencers, etc. diversified into financial services thinking that there were synergies, but were generally unsuccessful.
Using a retail outlet to socialise with staff is acceptable if brief, if there is no queue, if there is no manager present urging haste.