July 14, 2015
Westpac going through motions as Ruatoria branch axed
A Ruatoria community leader says Westpac was just going through the motions with consultation about closing down its branch in the remote East Coast township.
The bank has confirmed the branch will close in September, meaning the nearest bank will be Gisborne or Opotiki.
Manu Caddie says many customers were kaumatua who don’t feel comfortable doing their business by ATM or over the internet.
The former Gisborne District councillor met last week with senior managers including former National Party minister Simon Power to put options like co-location with another business, to no avail.
"They weren’t prepared to give us a period to prove that there was community support. A lot of land blocks said they would shift their business to Westpac if it meant keeping the branch there as a community asset and they said no we're not interested in doing that. So they'd made their decision long ago. They had to go through the process as a formality with their staff for their employment obligiations but their intention seems to always have been to close the branch." he says.
Manu Caddie says Ruatoria is looking at other options, such as trying to attract another bank or setting up a facility such as the community franchise developed by Australia’s Bendigo Bank.
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