Lloyds’ plans to shut 56 bank branches branded ‘unjustified and damaging’

Bosses at Lloyds have been urged to halt plans to shut 56 branches across the country after the closures were paused during the covid-19 pandemic.

Lloyds’ plans to shut 56 bank branches branded ‘unjustified and damaging’.

The banking group has announced it will now start the closures from March, a move branded “unjustified and damaging” by the Unite union.These will include Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland branches.Unite national officer Rob MacGregor said: “Unite has opposed these bank branch closures at every step.“The pandemic has highlighted the vital role our local bank branches play in providing an essential service to the community.At the start of this year, Lloyds said it would close the sites between April and October after customers continued to move towards online banking.Lloyds said: “We paused these closures due to the covid-19 pandemic and, after careful consideration, these planned closures will take place in March and April 2021.”The move will cost around 160 jobs, Unite said, but Lloyds stressed there will be no compulsory redundancies.

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