Why Britain's bank branch closure programme could be as damaging as the Beeching cuts - Greg Wright

in the virtual age, there is still no substitute for doing business face to face. It leads to deep bonds between a financial institution and its customers. These ties can never be forged through a purely online relationship.

In years to come, the wholesale destruction of Britain’s banking branch network will be regarded as just as damaging as the Beeching cuts, which ruined our railways in the 1960s.

Beeching’s report, which led to the closure of thousands of miles of railway and stations, still casts a heavy shadow. Although my home town of Ilkley fought a successful campaign to keep its railway connections with Bradford and Leeds, many communities around Britain, such as Addingham which is just three miles down the valley, were not so lucky. The price for this folly is being paid every day, with horribly congested roads and deteriorating air quality. The dramatic reduction in the scale of the UK’s bank branch network could have a devastating impact on some of Britain’s deprived communities.

When things go wrong, or you simple need advice, there really is no substitute for paying a trip to your local branch, where they may know your name and have an insight into your character.

We are in danger of becoming two nations, where the closure of bank branches places those who lack confidence in digital transactions on society’s margins. The risks have been illustrated by a major study.

Nearly four in 10 older people are not managing their money online and could be at risk of financial exclusion, according to the charity Age UK. Age UK commissioned Ipsos to carry out a poll of more than 1,000 people aged 65 and over across Britain in March and April. The survey found that many older people still want to meet somebody face to face when discussing their personal finances. Around three quarters of over-65s with a bank account told researchers they want to undertake at least one banking task in person at a bank branch, building society or Post Office.

The research also found that nearly a third (31 per cent) of older people with a bank account still feel uncomfortable about online banking.

Many older people are suspicious of online banking because they fear they could fall victim to fraudsters. The charity wants to see an accelerated rollout of banking hubs, where banks share facilities, to help plug gaps left by branch closures. According to the consumer group Which? banks and building societies have closed, or scheduled the closure, of 5,605 branches since January 2015, at a rate of around 54 each month. Few communities have escaped unscathed. The Government must force the major banks to reveal how they will ensure elderly and vulnerable people are not placed at risk from financial exclusion as a consequence of these closures.

Greg Wright is the deputy business editor of The Yorkshire Post