The banks have got it wrong on branch closures

MANY people are upset, with good reason, over bank branch closures and computer failures.

My local Nat West branch will close in June, which will mean my nearest branch will be eight miles away. I was given a pamphlet advising me my nearest ATM was at a branch of the Halifax that, in fact, closed last August.

I believe the real reason for branch closures is to force people to use internet banking. I wrote to the chief executive of Nat West, pointing out that one in five of the people in my area is aged over 65 and many can’t use computers.

I received a copy-and-paste reply from a minion that did not address the issue I had raised.

I know a number of computersavvy younger people who are just the type the banks are targeting. To my surprise, they are moving to Metro Bank because its branches are open at weekends and it has tellers.

This proves the big banks have got it wrong with branch closures. Due to the government bailout, taxpayers are major shareholders in RBS Nat West, so why doesn’t the Government appoint a board member to represent our interests?

JOHN EDWARDS, Epsom, Surrey.

Say sorry to us!

WITH the appointment of Sajid Javid as Home Secretary, the phrase ‘hostile environment’ is to be rejected with regard to immigration. But as a so- called baby boomer, I feel that my generation is living in what is fast becoming a hostile environment.

We are not well off after Gordon Brown trashed our private pensions. I receive only a third of what I expected to be living on in retirement. My annual increase for this year is 78p per month.

Politicians have apologised for what today are perceived as other errors made in the past, so how about apologising to us?

JANE MARSHALL, Glastonbury, Somerset. JUST because Sajid Javid’s father was a bus driver doesn’t mean he can’t do the job of Home Secretary — just as long as he arrives on time and doesn’t get cancelled. RONALD BALL, Farnborough, Hants.

Turned off by turbines

I WAS depressed after reading James Delingpole’s article about the colossal wind farm turbines that may be built off the North-East coast (Letters).

I was one of the non-experts who objected at the public inquiry to the proposed Navitus Bay wind farm to be built off Dorset.

Thankfully, it was turned down because of the efforts of many expert objectors, including pilots, ships’ captains, sailors, ornithologists, business people, marine biologists and MPs.

I was concerned at the damage to the seabed and marine life caused by wind farms. And what happens in 25 years’ time when the turbines are no longer economically viable? Will they be left in the sea?

RUTH NEARY, Weymouth, Dorset. FIVE years after having solar panels fitted, I noticed a drop in the energy produced. Squirrels had chewed through cables, so only half of the panels worked.

It has cost the equivalent of a year’s returns to have the cables repaired. To make matters worse, our insurance won’t cover this.

OLIVE MASTERS, Fleet, Hants.

Home truths

WHILE I understand the anger towards ‘selfish’ second-home owners who deny local people a home (Letters), there is another side to the story.

When my wife and I married in 2007, we each had a house. We live in one, but it has proved impossible to sell the other one, which is worth much less than its 2007 value. If we were to be taxed to the hilt for having a second home, as has been suggested, this would add insult to injury.

P. ROBINSON, Scunthorpe, Lincs. A HOLIDAY home buyer offering a higher price for a property than a local person can offer? That’s how capitalism works.

IAN GREEN, Malvern, Worcs. THE housing crisis facing millennials has been caused by soaring house prices, slow wage growth, tighter lending criteria and developers only building family homes.

We need a return to 100 per cent mortgages for first-time buyers, who are the key to reviving the property market.

MARGARET SMITH, Dover, Kent.

Thumbs up to Trump

I WOULD like to tell the people planning demonstrations during Donald Trump’s visit: not in my name.

I have made pilgrimages to Normandy and appreciate the sacrifice made by so many young Americans by supporting us in World War II, ensuring our freedom to protest. It has become fashionable to ridicule the U.S. President and yes, he has made crass comments.

Yet he has achieved what seemed impossible in striking an accord with North Korea and wiping out Syria’s chemical weapons. OLIVER CHISHOLM,

Sherborne, Dorset.

Deserve a medal

AFGHAN interpreters should not have to pay the Home Office £2,400 each to avoid deportation from the UK (Mail).

Their service to our country deserves better than that. Giving aid and support to our troops no doubt saved lives and put their own lives in danger.

Sending them and their families back to Afghanistan would be a death sentence. They should be welcomed here and given a medal. PHIL GRIMSON, address supplied.