Bank Branches In Sedbergh And Milnthorpe

EDM number 470 in 2014-15, proposed by Timothy Farron on 04/11/2014.
Categorised under the topic of Financial institutions.

That this House recognises that although the use of online banking has risen in recent years, there remains a very sizeable minority of people who rely solely on their local branch to do their banking; notes with concern the recent branch closure announcements by NatWest and Barclays in Sedbergh, which will result in the town being left without any bank branch and only one ATM, and the further announcement by NatWest that it will also be closing its Milnthorpe branch; regrets the detrimental effect that this will have on the local economy, including through the job losses this will incur, and the substantial disruption it will cause for local residents, in particular the elderly, vulnerable adults, and those who cannot drive; further notes that the NatWest customer charter states that it 'will make banking easier' and be there 'whenever you need help'; therefore strongly calls on NatWest and Barclays to fulfil their ethical duty to customers at a time when public trust in the sector is at an all-time low by working together to keep these branches open; and further calls on all UK banks to voluntarily recommit to retaining branches in towns where a closure would remove all banking services from the town.

This motion has been signed by a total of 5 MPs.