Dublin North East Sinn Féin -- Building an Ireland of Equals

Reaction to closure of Halifax operations.

Published: 9 February, 2010

Councillor Larry O'Toole has condemned the decision by Bank of Scotland to close its Halifax operations in Ireland with the loss of 750 jobs.

The announcement today will mean the closure of the Halifax office in Northside Shopping Centre with job losses there. Speaking after the announcement Larry O'Toole said, "The Government has spent the last year bailing out the banking sector at the expense of ordinary workers. It was announced in July last year that Halifax would be closing down its operations in Ireland, following direct orders from the British treasury. What I would like to know is what the Government was doing over the past few months to negotiate with both their counterparts in Britain and in Halifax to prevent this from happening.

The imminent loss of jobs here at our local Halifax office is merely one more blow to the locality. The people of this area need a Government that is proactive not passive; one that will take initiative and show leadership, rather than show indifference to the great unemployment crisis facing the country."