Bank closures, digital exclusion and cyber risks

That this House believes high street bank closures have a detrimental impact on small enterprises, local business resilience, charities, vulnerable customers and the digitally excluded and adds to the vulnerability of UK financial services, especially to cyber threat from rogue actors; remembers the Government injected £137 billion in loans and capital when banks needed bailing out during the financial crisis, and that this cost the public £23 billion overall; further believes that digital banking cannot be a full substitute for the comprehensive services provided through face-to-face services in bank branches, and that many complex and essential transactions are either very difficult or cannot be simply completed online; is concerned that these closures risk breaching the Financial Conduct Authority’s guidance on fair treatment of vulnerable customers and may breach Equality Act 2010 standards; notes LINK’s regulatory responsibilities in assessing access to cash, but believes these assessments are far too narrowly focussed and do not consider the full range of services required by customers and small businesses; is further concerned that high street banks often do not conduct sufficient social or equality impact assessments, nor engaged in any substantive consultation prior to closures; and calls the Government to review current regulations in this regard and to introduce a duty on banks to consult local communities before any further branch closure announcements.