Post Office Closures Threaten Community Sprit

Written by Jenny Randerson AM and published in Cardiff Post on Thu 1st Nov 2007

Last Tuesday the Post Office announced their next round of closures. Across Wales 1 in 5 Post Offices will close including 6 in Cardiff. Not surprisingly, the plans have met with anger from local residents, not least because they follow a previous round of highly controversial closures.

The Post Office argues that it has to reduce the number of branches as the network is no longer viable with the reduction in business over recent years. Let us be clear about this. The main reason why fewer of us are using the Post Office these days is because the Labour Government has reduced the number of services they can offer and appears to have done everything in its power to encourage us to collect our pensions and benefits via banks rather than the Post Office. It is therefore a bit rich to see Labour AMs and MPs lining up to defend their local Post Office when it's a Labour Government which has put them in that position. The Government owns the Post Office and it has to work within the rules set by Government.

The Labour Government has set commercial criteria for the running of the Post Office and has ignored the vital community role it plays. Many sub-postmasters help out their elderly customers in all sorts of ways. I have heard stories about them calling to check on elderly residents when they have not come in to collect their pension. Then there is the effect of a Post Office closure on surrounding local shops: it can often sound the death knell for nearby local businesses which have relied on customers shopping locally when they go to collect their benefits and pensions from the Post Office.

At least this round of closures has had some logic behind it. Previous closures have depended on which sub-postmasters wished to retire. This time the decision was based on the current level of business and the distance to an alternative Post Office. One mile seems to be the rule of thumb used in urban areas as a reasonable distance to walk to your local Post Office but one mile is a long way if you are 85 years old and use a walking frame!

The Welsh Liberal Democrats will be campaigning hard against these closures. Public consultation runs until 10th December and I urge all readers who are as worried about them as I am to write to Steve Geraty, Post Office Development Manager, c/o National Consultation Team, FREEPOST CONSULTATION TEAM or e-mail consultation@postoffice.co.uk

You can also sign our petition at www.savecardiffspostoffices.co.uk