Bank of Ireland decision to close Howth branch draws sharp criticism from local businesses

The Bank of Ireland yesterday defended plans to close five branches in Dublin, including its branch at Howth, an area which has no other bank.

A bank spokesman gave no indication that the closures would be reconsidered and said that the eventual target was to reduce the bank's network of 300 branches in the Republic to some 50 or 60 outlets.

The Howth branch is due to close in early November. The other branch closures will be in Clontarf, Cabra, Stoneybatter and Irishtown.

Business people and residents in the Howth area have protested over the planned closure and are unhappy with the bank's suggestion that they should transfer their business to the Bank of Ireland branch at Sutton Cross, two miles away.

Mr Charles McDermott, a chemist on Main Street, Howth, said that the Sutton Cross location was "an absolute mess" with no parking facilities and serious traffic congestion. He expressed concern about the safety implications of transporting large volumes of cash to Sutton.

He maintained that BoI was failing in its social obligations to the community in Howth and particularly to elderly residents and the business community. He could not understand the bank's attitude, since business was booming at the Howth branch, which had been there for some 60 years and served a community of between 5,000 and 6,000 people.

He found it "curious" that four of the proposed closures were on the north side of the city. BoI customers had been told of the Howth closure a month ago and were seeking a meeting with the bank. He could not understand why BoI was doing this when it was making £2 million a day.

A local fishmonger, Mr Nicky McLoughlin, said he would not continue to bank with BoI if it closed its Howth branch. A bank was badly needed in Howth and the people of the area had been loyal to BoI for decades. "Business is about people, looking after people", he said. "This is a slap in the face to the people here."

A Fianna Fail councillor, Mr Liam Creaven, said he was disappointed at the bank's decision and hoped it would reconsider. He had asked for the matter to be raised at Government level.

Mr Declan Reid, a spokesman for BoI, said that many customers were turning to electronic banking and using the Internet and the telephone for banking purposes. BoI had the largest network of branches in the Republic and ultimately planned to reduce its total to 50 or 60 branches to maintain competitiveness and because of technological developments and the move towards electronic banking.

He denied that BoI was focusing on the north side of the city and said that closures were also planned for the south side as well as across the State. He pointed out that BoI had had some 500 branches in 1969 and said that this number had been cut to 300 today. Branch mergers were not a new development, he added.

Mr Reid said that customer service remained the bank's priority and everything possible would be done to assist customers. An ATM service would continue to be provided in Howth. He accepted that customers might be inconvenienced, but said that BoI would do all it could to reduce this.