PICTURE: PAMore than a fifth of consumers in Northern Ireland saw their local bank branch close within three years, a report from a Stormont committee has said. The committee’s report recommended that the Executive should examine alternative measures of how available public funds could be used to support local banking and financial services provision. The committee launched its inquiry into the banking and financial services landscape following a number of local bank branch closures since 2020, as well as the arrival of banking hubs. The report said there are 16,000 cash access points in Northern Ireland compared to 50,000 in Scotland and 27,000 in Wales. The report said many rural areas in Northern Ireland could become “ATM free zones”, stating this would have a “negative impact on consumers and rural communities”.