Bank of Ireland in Carnew to close

The community of Carnew is in a state of shock after Bank of Ireland announced its branch in the town would close permanently from September.

ank of Ireland confirmed on yesterday (Monday) that it would close over 100 branches nationwide, and it’s understood staff were informed of the closure yesterday morning. Bank of Ireland has also announced it will work with An Post to offer banking services in local post offices.

Local councillors described the decision as a blow, while Enniscorthy TD Johnny Mythen condemned the bank’s actions.

‘It’s a blow to the Main street as a Bank of Ireland branch is something you expect to see in every Irish town but the banking sector in Ireland is changing,’ said Councillor Anthony Donohoe.

‘For the staff, I know that there’s going to be no mandatory redundancies but it might mean displacement for some staff that would have worked and lived locally in Carnew, and they might have to travel to Gorey or Bunclody to do their day’s work.

‘It’s disappointing for the elderly who wouldn’t have moved online yet but I believe that Bank of Ireland have an arrangement with An Post. If the same facilities are offered at the post office that were on offer at the Carnew branch, it’ll be a welcome boost for An Post to get more services put in. That elderly age bracket would probably be in the post office once a week anyway picking up their pensions, and now they’ll be able to do their banking as well. The Ulster Bank departure leaves us with very little major players in the industry’.

Deputy Mythen said that Bank of Ireland’s decision was wrong.

‘This is the wrong decision at the worst possible time and is a huge blow for customers and staff. It comes in the teeth of a global pandemic and less than two weeks after Ulster Bank announced its withdrawal from the southern market. The announcement by the Bank of Ireland was not strategic, but a knee-jerk reaction that cannot be justified. They should reverse this decision immediately and commit to a moratorium on branch closures until the Covid-19 pandemic ends. The people deserve better from a bank that was bailed out with their taxes, and I will be writing to the CEO of Bank of Ireland, the Minister for Finance and the Governor of the Central Bank in light of yesterday’s announcement’.

Gavin Kelly, CEO of Retail Ireland, Bank of Ireland said the bank remains committed to customers.

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