IT may be about to pay back €1.8bn in State aid – but Bank of Ireland has been told it can't take a slice out of Dublin's historic former parliament buildings.

It had hoped to knock a chunk out of the wall in order to replace two of the busiest ATMs in the country.

Dublin City Council has also told the bank that the continued presence of cash dispensers outside the iconic building on College Green – which dates back to the 1700s – is "not appropriate to its historic setting".

The bank has told the council it has been a good custodian of the iconic building, but plans to replace the two exterior ATMs facing Westmoreland Street as part of a nationwide upgrade of its 1,400 cash dispensers.

To fit the new machines, which are slightly larger than the existing ones, Bank of Ireland would need to remove some stone and a portion of the building's wall.

But permission for the larger cash dispensing machines has been refused by the council.

The council's conservation officer has said the removal of existing ATMs only to replace them with larger ones in the "sensitive setting of the historic portico" is "not supported as best conservation practice".

Bank of Ireland did not respond when asked if they would remove the ATMs altogether given the comment from the council's conservation officer.

Irish Independent