Locals threaten boycott of bank
The protest was organised by an action group in Doneraile, which is opposing the bank’s plans to close a sub office in that town on November 24.
Action group spokesman Willie Hallihan said he couldn’t understand Bank of Ireland’s attitude because Doneraile was set for boom times. He added that the closure would hit elderly people hardest and affect those who couldn’t drive — the nearest Bank of Ireland branch is eight miles away in Mallow.
“Bank of Ireland has had a presence in Doneraile for more years than most people can remember. We want to fight to preserve the services we have. They should not be cutting back on the two days a week they open. They should be opening more hours because Cork County Council has put millions of euro into infrastructural works in the town and there are around 400 houses at present in the planning process,” Mr Hallihan said.
The Doneraile branch opens two days a week, on Mondays and Fridays, from 10.30am to 12.30am and from 1.30pm to 2.30pm. A clerk and porter are employed during these hours.
“I’ve been with Bank of Ireland 50-something years and I am now transferring my account in protest to another financial institution. We have 100 other people who have signed up to withdraw their accounts should the sub office be closed,” Mr Hallihan said.
The former principal of the town’s Nagle Rice Secondary School said the school’s student bank was also Bank of Ireland and the bank would damage its prospects with younger people if they leave the town.
“Statistics show when a young person starts with one bank, they rarely change,” Mr Hallihan said.
A Bank of Ireland spokeswoman said the decision to close the Doneraile sub office was taken after “careful and lengthy consideration”.
She said with the proximity of larger and better resourced branches in the area — Mallow, Mitchelstown, Charleville, Kanturk — and the availability of automated customer access channels, it was not practical to maintain operations in Doneraile.
