Royal Mail improvements call after claims delayed post has caused court action and missed appointments

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https://uk.news.yahoo.com/royal-mail-im ... 00478.html

Hartlepool councillors have called for improvements to Royal Mail services in the town, after claims delayed letters have seen some residents face court action and miss medical appointments.

Royal Mail services were discussed at a borough council meeting on Thursday (October 1) following a motion from Reform UK councillors. The motion said the council was "deeply concerned by persistent and widespread reports from residents and businesses across Hartlepool of significant delays in the delivery of letters and other mail".

It was noted that the issue had been raised locally and in Parliament by Hartlepool MP Jonathan Brash, and the motion added the consequences for local people have been "serious and practical". This ranged from residents missing or arriving late for hospital and GP appointments due to notification letters failing to arrive in time, as well as the late arrival of bank cards and disruption to legal correspondence.

The motion added the "current level of performance is unacceptable" and called on Royal Mail to "restore regular and dependable deliveries" and to "provide clearer information to the public and to organisations that use the post (including health services) about realistic delivery timescales".

Other pledges included the council engaging with local postal workers and union representatives to "gain a clearer understanding of the operational difficulties" and the council writing to Royal Mail "requesting a detailed explanation of the causes of the delays in Hartlepool" and a "clear timetable for improvement".

The motion also included a review of the council's communication methods, such as greater use of council email, text messaging and online accounts, so "people are less reliant on postal deliveries for time-sensitive council correspondence."
Labour councillor Matthew Dodds, speaking at Thursday's full council meeting, praised local postal workers and said issues with Royal Mail services were linked to "the system, not the individuals".

He added that delivery issues had led to residents missing medical appointments and procedures, along with some residents facing county court judgements (CCJs) because "the fines have come through too late for them to be able to appeal."
Although the original motion was launched by Reform UK councillors, it was amended by Labour to include calls for the Government to take action to "bring Royal Mail back into public ownership".

The Labour amendment was narrowly approved by a majority vote and the final amended motion was subsequently approved with 13 votes for, 10 votes against and two abstentions. Reform UK councillor Adam Gaines, who proposed the original motion, explained the reasons why Reform UK Hartlepool voted against the amended motion in a Facebook statement after the meeting.

Cllr Gaines said "we voted against [Labour's] amendment because it hijacked a practical, local motion and turned it into a national party-political stunt that flies in the face of government policy" and added "when it was forced through anyway, the motion on the table was no longer the one we had written."

Hartlepool's Labour MP Jonathan Brash is due to meet with Royal Mail bosses soon over what he described as a "completely unacceptable" service in the town.

A Royal Mail spokesperson, in a previous statement, said: "We know how important it is that customers receive their mail when expected, particularly important items such as bank cards and other essential correspondence. We continue to focus on improving the reliability and consistency of the service for customers across the area."

Royal Mail added that 80.9 per cent of first class mail in the TS postcode area is delivered the next working day, with most of the remainder delivered in the following days.