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Maori Party MP Marama Fox says the proposed closure of the Westpac’s Ruatoria branch raises questions about the loyalty of Australian-owned banks.
She says people of the coast have been loyal to Westpac, but its manager wouldn’t front at the meeting called this week to discuss the closure.
She says many of the kaumatua and kui on the coast won’t or can’t move to internet and phone banking, and there are always occasions when people need kanohi ki te kanohi services without driving to Gisborne or Opotiki.
She says there was a call at the hui for a Ngati Porou bank.
"So there are places like Aotearoa Credit Union, partially Maori owned and also Kiwibank, kiwi owned at least that we can investigate should that fail, but first of all listen to the people. They have said we want to keep Westpac so we are going to try and endeavour to do that," she says.
Marama Fox says Westpac took $4 billion in profits out of New Zealand in the first six months of the year, so it should reconsider closing down the branch.
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