Banks never had it so good, but their customers never had it so bad, the conference heard. Senator Joe Costello, the Labour Party leader in the Seanad, said now that the State-owned banks had all been sold off, the major private banks, like AIB and Bank of Ireland, had decided that customer service was no longer necessary or desirable.
"Effectively, the banks are withdrawing from the communities without any consultation or any consideration as to how people will cope without any local banking service."
