Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 05 March 2026 [Draft]
05 Mar 2026 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
General Question Time
Face-to-face Banking Services
Regulation of financial services is reserved. However, the Scottish Government regularly engages with the sector and the regulator through ministerial engagements, such as meetings of the financial services growth and development board.
Scottish Government officials attended a forum convened by the Financial Conduct Authority on access to cash on 15 October 2025. That was an opportunity to raise Scotland-specific concerns directly with the FCA, LINK and Cash Access UK, including concerns about Scotland’s rural and remote geography and demographics and about decisions on banking hubs not taking into account individual communities’ needs. We continue to urge all financial services providers to listen to and address customer concerns.
In the same item of business
1. Clare Haughey (Rutherglen) (SNP)
SNP
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with the banking industry about maintaining access to face-to-face banking services on high streets...
The Minister for Business and Employment (Richard Lochhead)
SNP
Regulation of financial services is reserved. However, the Scottish Government regularly engages with the sector and the regulator through ministerial engage...
Clare Haughey
SNP
Yet another bank in my Rutherglen constituency is under threat of closure. By my count, nine bank branches have closed in recent years, which has left Blanty...
Richard Lochhead
SNP
The member raises an important issue. I think that all of us who are constituency members have experienced the loss of high street bank branches and face-to-...
Rachael Hamilton (Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con)
Con
Last month, the Bank of Scotland announced that it would close its branch in Kelso. That is the ninth closure in the Borders since 2022.I agree with Richard ...
Richard Lochhead
SNP
Such events have taken place in the past; I have attended them and I am happy for that to continue at some point in the near future. Perhaps the new Governme...