Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Bank of Ireland to shut 15 branches across Ulster area
‘Seismic shift’ to online banking reason for move
BANK of Ireland is to close 15 branches due to a “seismic shift” to online banking.
It will also be reducing its network from 257 to 169 in the Republic.
Bank of Ireland said the majority of the branches that are shutting are self-service locations which do not offer a counter service.
The closures come after Ulster Bank’s parent company Natwest last month announced it was withdrawing Ulster Bank from the Irish market.
Chief Francesca Mcdonagh said: “Technology is evolving and customers are using branches less year-on-year.
“Covid-19 has accelerated this changing behaviour and we’ve seen a seismic shift towards digital banking over the past 12 months.”
She added Bank of Ireland has reached a “tipping point” between online and offline banking, with its mobile app the most popular way to carry out transactions.
In contrast, the number of people visiting branches has “sharply declined” and is now just over half of what it was in 2017.
Ms Mcdonagh said: “We know
news like this can cause concern for some customers and for the communities that we serve.
“We’re not making these changes immediately – no branches will close in the next six months.”
Councillor Eamon Mcneill has described the Bank of Ireland branch closure in Portadown as a “hammer blow” and called on the bank to urgently clarify how it will support customers and staff.
He said: “This move will undoubtedly leave vulnerable and elderly customers without access to essential services.
“It is also highly disappointing there appears to have been very little local consultation or stakeholder engagement.
“In recent years we have had a migration of business away from
the city and town centres across to the internet, followed by the collapse of trade in traditional retail centres as a result of the Covid pandemic.
“This decision from the Bank of Ireland adds to this spiral of decline.”
Labour’s finance spokesman in the Republic Ged Nash described Bank of Ireland’s plans to close 88 branches as a “kick in the teeth” for thousands of loyal customers and staff.
He said: “There is no doubt Bank of Ireland is exploiting the Covid-19 crisis to drive down its costs.
“The bank’s ruthlessly opportunistic plans to cull 88 branches in towns across the State will have an even more severe and direct impact on the fabric of communities across the country than Ulster Bank’s recent announcement, given their extensive reach.”
No branch is going to close in the next six months FRANCESCA MCDONAGH YESTERDAY
SINGER Nadine Coyle has revealed she and ex Jason Bell are living together again.
The couple, who are parents to seven-year-old daughter Anaiya, split in 2019 after 11 years together.
And as rumours they have reunited continued, the Derry-born former Girls Aloud star set the record straight on their relationship status and their experience of lockdown at home in Northern Ireland.
The 35-year-old told OK! Magazine: “What we are doing works for us. It’s all about being supportive and being there for each other.
“Due to Covid-19, Jason has been here for a while.
“We share Anaiya so we have those rules there for people to be able to parent their children. It’s easy for us to be in the same place.”
Although Nadine said the pair haven’t put a label on their relationship and didn’t confirm whether they’ve reunited romantically, she opened up about how “close” they have become throughout lockdown.
She added: “We’re very close. I’ve known Jason for 14 years, which is a really long time.
“We get on great. We eat dinner together and have a lovely time. “He’s a great father to Anaiya – he’s helping her
with school work as we speak. Jason and I will always be in each other’s lives.”
On whether their reunion is romantic, Nadine said: “When you have a baby together and spend so much time together, there’s always that familiarity. With so much going on in the world we’re just trying to be in the moment and be there for Anaiya.
“I’m trying to get through day-today and figuring out how we can get back to normal life. I’m not rushing any situations or putting pressure on anything.”
Rumours of a reconciliation first sparked when they pair were spotted holding hands leaving the BBC studios after Strictly Come Dancing last year.
Jason, 42, told Heat magazine: “A lot of people want a lot of things, you never know.”
It’s all about being there and being supportive to each other NADINE COYLE OK MAGAZINE