A local campaigner has warned the closure of the TSB in Lochee will lead to the death of its high street.
On Wednesday the Tele reported the bank plans to close 73 branches across the country including Lochee and Craigiebank in Dundee.
Andy Duncan from Dundee Against Austerity said he will fight to keep the Lochee branch open, saying there is a real need for face-to-face banking.
He said: “It is vital we stand up for this bank and stop it because, if this bank closes, that is the final nail in the coffin.
“This is the last bank left in Lochee and there really is a requirement for face-to-face banking, particularly for older people.
“If this closes the High Street is over and done with.
“It will affect pensioners in Lochee itself, but also all the schemes on the periphery like Charleston, Dryburgh, Beechwood and Menzieshill – these are all areas of high deprivation where a lot of people use cash rather than chip and pin.
“In poorer areas there is a total reliance on cash and if someone is on Universal Credit they rely on pennies at the end of the month before they get paid again.”
He continued: “I fully intend to be there with a banner to fight for it because once it is gone, it is gone.
“I was brought up in Lochee and went to school here 60 years ago and for the older generation in Lochee they never went anywhere further than the High Street.
“It might seem strange, but that is how it is and I have watched it decline over the past six decades.
“If there is sufficient pressure and we give a good argument, we could manage to keep it open.
“If the whole community gets behind this campaign there is a possibility the bank will change its mind, it has happened before.”
The TSB closures, set to begin in early 2021, will affect more than half of all branches in Scotland and lead to 300 job losses.
The bank said a “significant change in customer behaviour” and increased online banking accelerated by Covid-19 had driven the decision.
Following the announcement, Shona Robison, MSP for Dundee City East, demanded an urgent meeting with TSB bosses.
© Andrew Cawley
She said: “Make no mistake, most businesses have been hit hard by coronavirus – banks are no exception.
“But at a time when many are feeling isolated, a face-to-face banking service in the local community is indispensable for my constituents.
“I have requested a meeting with TSB bosses regarding the future of services in the area – the bank needs to rethink this decision and allow our high streets to fully recover from this pandemic.
“I will fight to keep this branch open.”
A number of other TSB branches in Tayside and Fife are also earmarked for closure, including Carnoustie, Montrose, Coupar Angus, Blairgowrie, Pitlochry, Crieff, Rosyth, Burntisland, Cupar, Buckhaven and Anstruther.
