§ John ThursoTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent discussions he has held with(a) the Royal Bank of Scotland, (b) Halifax Bank of Scotland and (c) Clydesdale Bank concerning the provision of banking services in the Post Office; and if he will make a statement. [150396]
§ Mrs. McGuireI plan to meet representatives from the Royal Bank of Scotland in the next month to discuss a range of issue affecting the banking sector.
The three banks mentioned currently allow access to basic bank accounts through the Post Office branch network, but have not agreed to extend this access to other accounts. While the Government would urge all banks to provide their customers with access to their accounts through Post Offices, decisions to do so are commercial ones for individual institutions.
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§ John ThursoTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment he has made of the impact on the Scottish rural post office network of three of the major Scottish banks not offering full bank services at the Post Office; and if he will make a statement. [150397]
§ Mrs. McGuireI have made no such assessment. Decisions on whether to extend access to full banking services at Post Offices are commercial ones for individual institutions.