RBS boss unrepentant as he is grilled over branch closures.

committee: Branch-culling chief accused of misunderstanding Scotland

The branch-culling boss of RBS was accused of “completely misunderstanding” Scotland as he doubled down on the closures.

Ross McEwan, the chief executive of the taxpayer-owned bank, was unmoved by protests from MPs against the removal of up to 62 branches north of the border.

It was also revealed during the Commons clash that the independent review into footfall at 10 Scottish branches granted a reprieve will take place during one of the quietest times of the year, between June and August.

The Courier is campaigning against the closures because they will cut off society’s most vulnerable and make life even more difficult for small businesses.

The RBS branches to close in Courier Country are in Aberfeldy, Pitlochry, Perth South Street, Kinross, Dundee Stobswell, Dunblane and Montrose.

Comrie has been granted a “stay of execution” pending the summer review.

John Lamont, for the Scottish Conservatives, told Mr McEwan at the Scottish Affairs Committee yesterday that many Scots do not have access to broadband and rely on banking in person.

The Borders MP said: “I think you completely misunderstand how many of your customers do banking.”

In one of several attempts to get Mr McEwan to halt the closures, Pete Wishart, the committee’s chairman and a Perthshire SNP MP, said the £9.5 million saving is “small beer” for a bank that announced £750m profit for the first quarter of the year.

Defending the programme, Mr McEwan said: “The world has changed and we have to change as well.

“I accept that is very difficult and that is why we have over 2,000 points (of physical service) where our customers can connect with us through a post office, through our mobile vans, through our community bankers.”

Asked if he would listen to the public anger and change tack, he replied: “We are reshaping this bank and our view was to reshape it in a way that we gave lots of other alternative services to customers.

“So yes, we are closing a number of branches and they will go ahead.”

He insisted the usage review of the 10 branches, which was announced earlier this year, is not just an “olive branch”.

But he admitted there was still not a company in place to undertake the assessment, despite it starting next month, and could offer no details on how it would be conducted.

Speaking after the meeting, Labour MP Ged Killen said: “The answers given by Mr McEwan to the committee this morning were vague when we wanted specifics and focused on specifics when we asked for the bigger picture.”

Christine Jardine, the Lib Dem MP, said people “deserve better” than closures, but welcomed a commitment from the RBS boss to set up a meeting to discuss plans for banking hubs.

Before the meeting Unite accused executives of downplaying the impact on jobs.

The union claimed that from the 52 branches facing immediate closure, there would be 179 compulsory job cuts in the 228-strong workforce.

RBS said they do not recognise the figures and that the majority of the branch staff have chosen voluntary redundancy or been redeployed.

Picture: PA. Ross McEwan faced a grilling when he appeared before the Scottish Affairs Committee.