Postmasters are calling for urgent government action to safeguard the network of rural post offices.

A four-million-name petition is being handed into Downing Street, and the National Federation of Subpostmasters is holding a rally in London.

 

It says income lost from some services may threaten the network's future.

 

The post office network is losing £200m a year and the government is widely expected to require some closures as part of a subsidy renewal agreement.

 

The number of post offices has fallen from 18,393 in 1999 to 14,376 in 2005, according to Postwatch, the postal services watchdog.

 

The government says the 800 smallest post offices are used by an average of 16 people a week, and that the rural network is currently supported by an annual subsidy of £150m.

 

 

'My post office under threat'

 

A Downing Street spokesman the government had made an unprecedented investment in the Post Office network of more than £2 billion, including £750 million for the rural network.

 

"We recognise that some offices, maybe, will never be commercially viable but play an important social role. Equally, however, we have to make sure that the network is sustainable," he said.

 

Trade and Industry Secretary Alistair Darling said doing nothing was not "sustainable" and the Post Office needed to adapt.

 

He said that many of the services once offered exclusively could now be done elsewhere - for example, people were now able to buy road tax online, 98% of new pensions were paid straight into people's bank accounts, and TV licences could no longer be bought at post offices.

 

It was "inconceivable" there would be no subsidy of post offices, but the amount would depend on the final decision on the future shape and size of the network, he said.

 

"I want to maintain a national network, but I want to do it in a way that will last so we don't keep coming back again and again to the underlying problems we have had in the past few years," he said.

 

'Crunch time'

 

The NFSP says the petition is Britain's biggest-ever domestic petition handed to Downing Street.

 

General secretary Colin Baker said it was "crunch time" for post offices.

 

"The 28 million customers who use the Post Office every week are confused as to what the government wants of the network and of the people who run it," he said.

 

"We believe that the time is now overdue for ministers to decide."

 

Among problems faced by post office income is the planned withdrawal of the Post Office card account, used by millions to access pensions and benefits.

 

Almost 400 MPs have signed an early day motion calling for that decision to be reversed.

 

It was tabled by Kate Hoey MP, who chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group for sub post offices.

 

The NFSP campaign is also backed by Citizens Advice, which said the closure of many post offices had already hit pensioners and disabled people particularly hard.

 

"The government should recognise the role of the post office at the heart of the community and invest in the future of the post office network."

 

The Transport and General Workers Union called on the government to consider the consequences of fewer rural post offices.

 

"Fine words butter no parsnips and we need the government to clearly understand the balance sheet approach to rural services is not the right one," said Chris Kaufman, its national secretary for agriculture.

 

Source - BBC News..

 

Thoughts? Opinions?

 

Personally, I think it would be a bad move to shut down rural post offices, whether they lose money or not it's really irrelevant, they do provide a good local service to the people who rely on them. We cant just turn our backs on rural communities.. I'd rather subsidise the rural PO network through my taxes than subsidise the Iraq War or a load of new Nukes, but that's just me....

at the risk of sounding trite... i agree with scott, lol, they shouldnt be closed as they provide a service and are important in keeping village life going.

I think we should attempt to preserve them, but to be honest the ones that attract an average of 16 people a week really shouldn't be open. It's no real loss if only 16 people use it, I think the cut off should be at least 30 people a week, otherwise the post offices are just money plugholes...

I've worked in a Post Office and I know how valuable they are to the community. It was bad enough when the Pension books were dispensed with and everyone was made to have their money either paid into the bank or they had to open a Post Office Card Account. Many of the pensioners, especially the older ones, had a real problem using the pin number system, but at least they were able to pay their bills, TV Licence and get their pension, all at the same time. With all these closures, they're expected to have to travel to their nearest bank branch, which isn't easy if they don't have transport.

 

The problem is, now many of their services are being taken away from them, the Post Offices aren't making the money they used to.Having said this I believe the government really do need to do all they can to help keep the offices open as they are a much needed part of our community.

few years ago my nearest post office was 2min walk away, then that closed down, then the nearest one was 10min walk away until they closed that one down too. now if i want to go to the post office i have to get 20 min bus ride which i suppose isnt really a big problem for me but there are a lot of old people living here who need post offices for whatever old people need them for (dont know if they still have to get there pensions from there :P)

 

my grans friend is about 85, he cant drive, can hardly walk for longer than 10mins so my gran has to take him to the post office once a week when before it was just around the corner from him and it was his exercise walking to the post office

My local post office just up the road was closed down a while ago. I used to go there quite frequently as a kid to post a letter or something for my mum. The old couple who ran it were very nice, and they had run it for about 40 years, but then they retired and an Asian family bought it. They didn't stay long for some reason though. They went around the time a lot of post offices were being shut around the country. Anyway, what used to be the local post office is now a tanning salon. :rolleyes:

 

We have to travel to the town centre now if we want to get anything post office related, and that post office is more like a bank anyway. It isn't really that much of an inconvienience for me personally, but I imagine it is for old people, who I suspect are the group who probably use the post office most often.

Edited October 23, 200618 yr by ghostwriter

Alot have closed around my way, already, we have to travel 7 mile, to the nearest post office :smoke:

Yes, the government should get their heads out of their arses and help communities and villages in this country, what is being spent daily in Iraq by Bliar would keep every post office in rural communities open for months, most of these people who are facing hardship through post office closures are elderly people with walking difficulties and illnesses many of whom have no transport who made a big contribution 60 years ago to the fact that we do not have to wear swastikas and goose step every day and they do not deserve to be treated this way by the government and have their post offices close and take away further quality of life for them. Keep the post offices open

Edited October 23, 200618 yr by Kimi Räikkönen