Simon Hart MP is dismayed that Narberth high street is to lose its last remaining bank. Barclays has announced that its St James Street branch is closing at the end of June, following the previous closures of HSBC and NatWest.
“This is very sad news for Narberth, despite all their reassurances Barclays is now leaving the town with no high street banks at all,” he said.
“I met Barclays bosses a year ago and they spelled out their commitment to community banking and told me there were no immediate plans to close local branches. It is very frustrating that high street banks appear to be saying one thing and then doing another.
“I appreciate that using an on-line banking app is an alternative option but many elderly customers do not have mobile phones. There is also the problem that you are only able to pay in cheques with a value of up to £500 and we have a lot of self-employed business people down here who will not be able to use that option.”
Mr Hart lives near Narberth and was a regular user of the branch.
He added: “Thanks to the enterprising traders in Narberth we do now have a Post Office branch on the High Street in the Costcutter which can be used for banking and we also have a cashpoint in the Spar opposite.
“It seems like the small independent traders are having to fill in the gaps being left behind by the big banks.”