No services means struggling post offices, say MPs

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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Councils are quick to complain about post office closures but slow to help branches remain viable by channelling services through them.

That is the conclusion of a parliamentary inquiry into postal services, which found patchy evidence of local government services offered through post offices.

The commons business and enterprise select committee urged the Local Government Association to lead efforts to expand the availability of council services through the post office network.

Post Office Ltd told the committee that 312 councils offered at least one service through its branches but only 55 used them for council tax or rent payments.

The committee said councils were even less consistent than central government in making use of post offices and “many are quick to say they support post offices, but then are slow to offer their services through them - the support that really matters.”

It received many suggestions that post offices could be ‘one-stop shops’ for local government services.

But the committee poured cold water on suggestions from Essex CC that councils could become responsible for providing post office services.

“Relying on local authorities’ funding to maintain the network would result in poorer local authorities providing fewer or poorer services,” the report found. “This would undoubtedly undermine the uniformity of service, which we have heard is a desirable — some might say necessary — characteristic of a sustainable post office network.”

[PrestwickPostie]

that coming from a shower of leaches that have lined their pockets with our taxes for years whilst claiming for stuff like mortages for houses that had already been paid for :mfo and are to blame for our current economical state along with being responsible for Royal Mail's plight by appointing a watchdog that was intent of destroying Royal mail by refusing to give us a level playing field so that we could complete against the likes of Tnt

they do not understand that we are fighting to save jobs and working conditions for our members ... they seem to think we should all bend over and drop our pants whilst royal mail rodger us stupid ... that will be f*cking right

IMHO the strike should be a national one

[Lounge Lizard]

http://www.lgcplus.com/policy-and-polit ... 15.article


Post Office Ltd told the committee that 312 councils offered at least one service through its branches but only 55 used them for council tax or rent payments.

I pay my council tax at the Post Office monthly, so how widely availablec is this service ?
For many a year I paid Rates / Community Charge / Council Tax by direct until debit my bank messed all that up, since which time I paid cash at the Council Offices, that's until they closed the cashiers counters, urged me to pay by direct debit, phone, on line etc. all of which I declined so then they sent me a card to pay, at no additional cost, at any Post Office.