The Scottish Labour party filed a motion to be debated in the country's parliament concerning a decision by Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc to close a further 259 branches, expected to result in 680 redundancies, Reuters reported Dec. 5, citing the filed transcript.
The closures would represent a quarter of RBS' U.K. branch network but more than a third of its outlets in Scotland, or 62 in total. The motion is expected to gain widespread support and contains language expressing "concern about a lack of support for small businesses, people in rural areas and the elderly."
A date has not yet been set for the debate. Labour is the third-largest party in the Scottish parliament, although the ruling Scottish National Party has said it will oppose the planned closures until a provision for guaranteed minimum level of service is put in place. The SNP has called on the U.K. government to implement such a guarantee across the U.K.
