THE closure of two North Ayrshire branches of the Clydesdale Bank has been slammed by the local MSP and by UNISION.

CYBG PLC, the bank’s parent company, last week announced that it was to shut 40 of its Scottish branches so it could invest £350m in digital innovation over the next two years.

As a result, the Clydesdale Bank in Saltcoats is set to close on June 5 and the Beith branch will shut on June 13.

After the closures, the nearest Clydesdale Bank to Saltcoats will be in Irvine, while Beith customers face almost a 13mile hike to Paisley for their closest branch

MSP for Cunninghame North Kenny Gibson described the closures as “shocking” and “out of the blue”.

He said: “It is shocking that, seemingly out of the blue, the Clydesdale Bank is closing 79 branches across the UK, with 40 in Scotland and two in my own constituency, Beith and Saltcoats.

“The closures represent a third of the bank’s branch network and will cost 400 jobs while forcing some customers to drive up to 20 miles to the next nearest branch.

“The Clydesdale Bank must provide evidence it has complied with the British Banking Association’s Access to Banking Protocol which requires three distinct phases: a pre-closure assessment, a community engagement and an impact assessment, which is published prior to any closure.

“While the bank has carried out a pre-closure assessment, I am not aware of how this protocol is being adhered to in relation to community engagement or an impact assessment in relation to Beith and Saltcoats. I have therefore written to the bank for clarification and details as to why these branches have been targeted, leaving no Clydesdale branch between Largs and Irvine.

“The bank claims footfall is down. This can only accelerate with more branch closures.

“Moving customer accounts – unilaterally it seems – to Paisley and Saltcoats is hardly in their interest and whilst certain services will be available in local post offices it will not be the range of services customers are used to from a high street bank.

“The Clydesdale bank must think again!”

Clydesdale Bank anticipates that around 200 staff will be at risk of redundancy and subject to their redeployment process. The company says that all employees affected by these changes “will be fully supported through the process”.

The closures of the Saltcoats and Beith Clydesdale Banks have been slammed by the local UNISON.

Louise McDaid, secretary of UNISON North Ayrshire branch, said: “This is bad news for both these small towns and terrible news for those who may be losing their jobs.

“Local banks are vital for our local economy. Beith and Saltcoats need decent jobs too. There is only so much you can do on mobile banking.

“I know that UNISON members often need to sit down face-to-face to speak to someone about their banking and welcome the chance to do so in their lunch hour.”

According to Clydesdale Bank, the number of customers using their branches for day-to-day transactions has fallen by a third across the UK banking industry since 2011.

The company says that this ongoing decline in branch usage, combined with an increase in digital and mobile engagement, has “driven a shift to providing greater access to day-to-day banking services remotely, on the move and outside of normal business hours”.

Clydesdale Bank is set to invest £350million over the next two years to embrace digital innovation “while continuing to invest in a more sustainable branch network to deliver a superior customer experience”.

Gavin Opperman, Customer Banking Director at Clydesdale Bank, said: “While the decision to close any branch is never an easy one, it is important that we, in line with other banks operating in the UK market, continue to respond to changes in the way customers want to bank with us.

“The changes announced continue our journey towards a model that combines an enhanced digital platform with a right sized branch network; allowing customers to interact with us through a wide range of channels – mobile, online, telephone, in-branch – whenever and however they want.”

Posters will be placed in each affected branch advising customers of the impending closure.

Written notification will be sent at least 12 weeks before any branch closes providing details to customers on the alternative ways of continuing to manage their accounts, including nearest branches, ATMs and Post Office counters – which Clydesdale Bank customers can use for day-to-day banking.