Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent representations he has made to representatives of RBS on ensuring the maintenance of free access to money for people in communities affected by that bank's programme of branch closures.

I have met with RBS to discuss their recent announcements. Decisions on opening and closing branches and the format of the provision of service are taken by the management team of each bank on a commercial basis and the Government does not intervene in these decisions.

The Government is committed to widespread free access to cash. LINK, the organisation that runs the UK’s ATM network, operates a Financial Inclusion Programme, which subsidises ATMs in areas that have poor access to cash and would not otherwise be viable. LINK has committed to protecting all free-to-use ATMs which are a kilometre or more from the next nearest free-to-use ATM.

The Payment Systems Regulator Limited (PSR) has also committed to using their powers to maintain widespread free access to cash should they need to.