Letter: Don’t let fat cats close the New Forest’s banks

I write with reference to your article about further bank closures (5th Jan).

Surely it is about time the government stepped in to stop the ‘fat cat’ bankers that used to rely on the public support from closing any more branches and destroying towns and villages by removing banks and building societies.

I have a 91-year-old mother who banks at Barclays and Lloyds. She has no idea how to use a computer and, certainly reading in the papers about all the fraud, refuses to do telephone banking. She wants to see someone face-to-face.

She will not use ATMs because again she is worried about who is standing behind her, having had a bad experience in the past. So I have to drive into Bournemouth from Highcliffe every time she need to visit the bank.

It is okay saying that the post office will give her money and she can put money in there, but the post office can’t always answer her questions, so off to Bournemouth we have to go again.

In a world where we travel to space, we have Elvis being reincarnated through AI and drones are fighting wars, surely the banking world can collaborate to establish some kind of banking hub where their staff will be in attendance and able to answer the questions.

It’s not just about my mum, it’s also about putting footfall on the street, in the village or town that people may pop into a shop next door or have a coffee in the cafe while doing their banking. As these banks are closing, so are the towns/villages that they were in.

Are we being so short sighted that we can’t see all the negatives? Because I certainly can’t see the positives

Ian Bronsdon

Walkford