Like so many places across our country, bank branches have closed at an alarming rate in Broxbourne.
At one time not so long ago, residents could pop into a branch of every major high street bank in our town centres of Waltham Cross, Cheshunt and Hoddesdon.
Just last week, Halifax became the latest bank to shut its doors in Waltham Cross, while in Hoddesdon the former site of Barclays remains empty, a scar on an otherwise vibrant town centre.
And in Cheshunt, a town of 40,000 people, not a single bank branch remains.
The lack of in-person banking is depriving people of access to vital services, and, for so many older and vulnerable people, causing huge difficulty and frustration as they are forced on to digital services and smartphone apps.
In any sensible view Cheshunt would be the perfect site for a banking hub, but I am continually frustrated by the process and criteria a location has to meet to be eligible for a hub.
It fails to take into account the wide area a town like Cheshunt serves, and puts far too much faith in our local bus services.
I am continuing to pursue every possible avenue to secure better access to important banking services.
