Banks and their debt to society
Brexit blamed for Lloyds cuts
UNLIKE THOSE businesses which accepted the will of the people after Britain voted to leave the European Union, the Lloyds Banking Group appears to be exploiting the economic uncertainty by accelerating its cost-cutting programme. Even though the firm’s Twitter account stressed the decision to cut another 3,000 jobs, and close an additional 200 branches, was taken before the Brexit vote on June 23, chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio did blame the “uncertain” outlook.
These mixed messages will not endear the statebacked Lloyds hierarchy to its staff – these cuts are in addition to the 9,000 roles previously earmarked for the axe – and its customers who had to bail out the banking industry at the height of the financial crisis. Yet, while some of the cuts can be attributed to changes in customer behaviour as more people bank online, Lloyds did still post a profit of £2.5bn and safeguards are needed to ensure that clients, particularly the elderly and others without internet access, can still access a branch with relative ease.
Even though Harriet Baldwin, the then Exchequer Secretary, told Parliament last month that a good branch network remains “essential”, she did admit: “I need to start with a confession. I am a rural Member of Parliament. I spend four days a week up here in London. If I think about it, I actually cannot remember when I last went into a bank branch. I have been to the cashpoint, here and in my constituency, but I also ask myself when, these days, do I even use cash? The only place seems to be in the House of Commons Tea Room. I understand contactless is coming there soon, so where will we all be then?”
A remark which went to the nub of the issue, the British Bankers’ Association and the Government must ensure that existing protocols are fit for purpose, particularly when it comes to the proposed closure of the so-called ‘last bank in town’ so this only occurs as a very last resort. Given the likelihood of further closure announcements by rivals to Lloyds, and the banking sector’s continuing debt to society, the public interest demands nothing less.