Lloyds blames Govt guarantee scheme for €1.6bn loss

Bank Of Scotland Ireland's parent company, Lloyds Banking Group, has said the Government guarantee scheme contributed to it losing almost €1.6bn in deposits over the past year.

Customer deposits at Lloyds' international subsidiaries, including Ireland, fell by 22% last year.

In a statement to the London stock exchange Lloyds said the principal reason for this was aggressive competition from Irish banks which were also benefitting from having their deposits backed by the Government.

Lloyds announced the closure of its Halifax retail network in Ireland earlier this month with the loss of 750 jobs.