Earlier this week, Catherine Fookes, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Monmouthshire, launched an online petition to bring banking services back to the high street and is calling for residents to participate. Halifax in Abergavenny is set to close this summer, marking the eighth bank closure in Monmouthshire in two years and the second bank closure in Abergavenny this year. In her campaign to tackle the decline of banking services in Monmouthshire, Ms Fookes has called for improved community banking services in towns and better access to cash for residents in rural villages. In December, Ms Fookes conducted an online survey to gauge the impact of bank closures on residents. According to her survey, 94.1% of the participants were worried about the impact of bank branches closing, and 88.2% said they would be interested in having a banking hub in their local area. It also indicated that 91.2% of the participants think there should be more free-to-use 24-hour ATMs in rural villages, and 13.2% reported that they do not have access to cash within a 5-mile radius of their homes. In their plan for British high streets, the Labour Party have pledged to roll out banking hubs to guarantee face-to-face banking in every community, boosting the local economy. The Party suggested that the banks would collectively meet the cost of opening and operating the hubs.  

Ms Fookes said, “The closure of bank branches is devastating for the local economy, local businesses, and residents, especially our most vulnerable who rely on face-to-face services. "Barclays in Abergavenny closed its doors for the last time last month, becoming the seventh bank to close in Monmouthshire in two years. Residents in Chepstow are being signposted to Bristol, and Caldicot has been left with no bank branch at all. "We need better community banking in Monmouthshire, instead of this steep decline in banking services. That is why I am asking you to support my campaign to bring a banking hub to Monmouthshire: to help people deposit and take out cash, get support and help with broader banking services." 

You can sign Catherine Fookes' online petition at https://survey.labour.org.uk/monmouthshirebanking