ROYAL Bank of Scotland was criticised today for going ahead with the controversial closure of its Gourock branch this week.
It is due to shut on Thursday because the bank says that customer demand has fallen sharply.
Lib Dem councillor Kenny Shepherd said RBS bosses were 'out of touch' with their customers and staff.
He said: "The Port Glasgow branch has already been closed and the Gourock branch is set to follow.
"As the RBS Group returns to profit and senior bosses award themselves million pound bonuses, many local people are asking why customers and staff are paying for the failures of investment bankers."
A spokeswoman for the bank stressed that the decision to close the Gourock branch was not an easy one to take.
She said: "It includes factors such as location and proximity of other branches, usage of the branch and customer behaviour, such as use of mobile and online channels.
"We closed Port Glasgow in early 2012, leaving several alternative branches closely available for the local community to use.
"We will close Gourock branch in June as the number of customers using the branch has decreased each year over the last few years, with 27 per cent less customer transactions than six years ago."
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