Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of bank branch closures on rural communities.

The Government is committed to ensuring that people who need in-person banking can continue to access essential services.

That is why the Government commissioned an independent Review into Access to Banking Services, to assess whether changes to in-person banking services are causing consumer detriment, the scale of any detriment, and who and where it affects. The Review is considering these questions across the whole of the UK, including in rural communities.

The Government will publish the Review’s report in due course.