The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has been accused of 'engineering' the closure of an East Lothian branch with fewer staff and shorter opening hours, by a local councillor.
Lee-Anne Menzies told a meeting of East Lothian Council it did not 'take a genius' to see why footfall at the Tranent branch had fallen in recent years.
And she joined other local ward councillors in criticising the financial institute over its failure to consult with the community or council before announcing plans to shut the last remaining bank branch in the town.
READ MORE: Closure of last bank in East Lothian town branded 'appalling'
RBS has announced plans to close its branch in the town at the end of July.
Councillor Menzies, local ward member, questioned the bank's claims the branch was no longer drawing in enough customers.
RBS has said counter transactions at the branch fell by 48% between 2019 and 2022 with claims it only had 37 regular customers during 2021.
Councillor Menzie said: "We are told it is a business decision and the bank is not servicing enough customers to be viable however they take no responsibility for the actions that have led to this demise.
"Reducing staff and causing queues at busy times, not opening on a Saturday and closing at the same time as most of our schools close, it is no wonder the footfall has dropped. They have engineered it that way.
"Neighbouring Dalkeith has a far higher footfall. It also has state of the art equipment, far more staff and is open six days a week with a later closing time.
"It doesn't take a genius to work out why one is seeing growth and the other is seeing a decline."
A motion calling on council bosses to sit down with the bank's chairman and chief executive to find an alternative to the closure was unanimously backed by councillors during the meeting.
Councillor Colin McGinn paid a personal tribute to the local staff who, he revealed, helped his family through the devastating loss of his father.
He said: "Losing my father very suddenly during the pandemic caused my family immense grief and dealing with the financial issues, following his death, was just so difficult.
"Having a member of the RBS team in our local branch to support and guide us through the process was invaluable and we are forever in her debt as a family.
"That is the local service you get through a local branch, you cannot get that type of service through an app on your phone or on your iPad."
Councillor McGinn said the loss of the branch would leave a large part of East Lothian without a physical bank which would impact on town regeneration, charities and local community groups who rely on services.
He added: "This closure is about maximising profits and returns for those with shares, something like £2 billion was the planned dividend payments last year."
Councillor Fiona Dugdale, who brought the motion to council said she was 'shocked' when she heard news of the local branch closure.
She said: "I could not believe this major financial institution had made this decision with no consultation or discussion with local people.
Councillor Dugdale said while she understood the bank had looked back at performance in making its decision she was surprised it had not also looked forward, adding: "As we are one of the fastest growing areas in Scotland I would have expected that to be considered."
A spokesperson for RBS said: "As with many industries, most of our customers are shifting to mobile and online banking, because it’s faster and easier for people to manage their financial lives.
“We understand and recognise that digital solutions aren’t right for everyone or every situation, and that when we close branches we have to make sure that no one is left behind.
“We take our responsibility seriously to support the people who face challenges in moving online, so we are investing to provide them with support and alternatives that work for them.”
READ NEXT:
East Lothian snack van introduces edible ice-cream tubs to reduce litter
Bid to save East Lothian road delayed as council leader calls for new report
'Serious concerns' over £8.5m Musselburgh care home as inspectors rate it 'weak'
Bid to open East Lothian car wash next to retail park rejected because it's in the countryside
East Lothian developer to pay £1.3m towards new school spaces
