A cross-party group of 124 MPs has written to Barclays denouncing the decision to withdraw banking services from the Post Office
The group, led by Welsh Labour MP Chris Elmore, has accused Barclays of ‘dragging the carpet from under the feet’ of vulnerable customers.
The group has called upon the firm to reverse its decision in a letter to Barclays chief executive Jes Staley.
Barclays recently decided to withdraw the facility for its customers to withdraw cash from Post Offices, in a bid to save £7 million a year.
But Mr Elmore’s letter describes even this simple service as “thin gruel” for customers already battered by a litany of branch closures.
The letter notes that of 3,312 bank branch closures since January 2015, nearly one third (481) were Barclays branches.
Mr Elmore has called on banks to “start taking their responsibility to elderly & vulnerable customers seriously.”
The letter continues: “Quite simply, amidst the current uncertainty many people face around access to cash and wider banking services, this decision appears to be a retrograde step which will impact your poorest customers hardest.
"It sends a message – rightly or wrongly – that those who cannot properly access the digital economy will have the carpet dragged from under their feet as our high street banks continue to abandon communities that have sustained them for decades.”
As such the group of MPs has called upon the high-street bank to reverse its decision.
Moneywise has contacted Barclays for a response to the letter. A Barclays spokesperson says: “We acknowledge receipt of the letter from Chris Elmore MP, and we are working with him and other MPs to confirm our new commitments that will ensure that no one will be left without access to cash.”