- Some 6,000 bank branches have disappeared from high streets since 2015
- The centers allow customers of many different banks to use the services
- The conservatives delivered 50 banking centers since January 2022
More cities in Britain will receive a banking hub under a Labor government.
It has committed to rolling out 350 banking centers in cities and towns across Britain over the next five years.
The centers are shared centers where customers of most major banks can come to withdraw and deposit cash and get banking support and advice.
They were created in response to widespread branch closures: 6,000 bank branches have closed their doors since 2015.
The Labor Party has announced a plan to roll out 350 banking centers in Britain over the next five years.
They are bank-funded, set up by not-for-profit company Cash Access UK and operated by the Post Office.
Banking centers already exist under the Conservative government. 56 banking centers have opened since January 2022, Cash Access UK confirmed, with a further 76 in the pipeline.
Banking centers can only open in communities where all banks (as well as building societies nationally) have closed their branches, such as Cambuslang in South Lanarkshire, which received a banking center as part of a pilot program in April 2021 .
Even then, centers can only be approved if it is deemed there will be sufficient demand for services.
Customers can request one in their location through access to the cashier service, Link.
However, some towns have had their application for a banking center refused, including Todmorden in West Yorkshire and Harpenden in Hertfordshire.
The Labor Party has proposed updating qualification criteria to ensure unbanked towns and underserved communities can access face-to-face banking services.
It has also announced that it will give Link and the Financial Conduct Authority the powers they need to identify areas that need a banking hub, to speed up the rollout.
Areas that do not currently have major banks will be first in the queue, Cash Access UK said.
The Post Office is on track to become the UK’s largest banking network, with more than 11,500 branches. It began offering banking services in 2017.
Its latest accounts reveal it made revenue of £263m from banking in 2023, up from £230m in 2022.
Rachel Reeves, Labour’s shadow chancellor, said: “After 14 years of the Conservatives, many of our high streets have been reduced to ghost towns.
“Labour’s growth plan means putting banking back on the high street, with hundreds of new banking centers that can support local communities and their businesses.”
Angela Rayner, deputy leader of the Labor Party and shadow housing secretary, added: ‘The Labor Party is the party that is on the side of small businesses. With our plan to put banking back on high streets, replace business rates and cut energy bills for good, we will breathe new life into Britain’s high streets.’
