Copperas Hill: ‘All hope lost’

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpoo ... -22176004/

POSTAL union leaders fear a new report into the future of the mail service will kill off any hopes of keeping a sorting centre in Liverpool.

The Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) is desperately trying to convince Royal Mail to build a new sorting centre for the city rather than switch sorting duties to Warrington

The existing Copperas Hill sorting centre closes in 2010 under a shake-up that will see five of seven north west sorting centres shut.

But further fears for the future of Royal Mail service have now emerged after reports that a new plan goes even further and proposes to cut up to 20,000 jobs, halve Royal Mail’s 69 sorting centres and axe Saturday collections and deliveries.

The report is being compiled by Richard Hooper, a former deputy chairman of the regulator Ofcom.

He has yet to deliver his plan for the future of Royal Mail to business secretary Lord Mandelson, but speculation involving the wide-ranging changes is beginning to circulate after a private briefing given by Mr Hooper to selected MPs and peers last week.

Merseyside CWU branch secretary Mark Walsh said Mr Hooper was involved in the report proposing the scaling back of north west sorting centres and the closure of Copperas Hill.

And he predicted: “This is the blueprint for privatisation. Richard Hooper has been involved in the shake-up of the sorting centres and this probably dashes any hopes of getting a Liverpool sorting office.”

He said the CWU national executive was meeting this week to discuss concerns about the report.

The loss of Copperas Hill would make it the only major UK city without its own sorting office.

The CWU national executive is meeting in London tomorrow.

Royal Mail said: “We don’t know what the Hooper recommendations are or will be yet so we cannot comment.”