EDM 764 POST OFFICE BRANCHES WITHIN SUPERMARKETS 41 SIGNED

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Early Day Motion http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetai ... ESSION=899" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
EDM 764

POST OFFICE BRANCHES WITHIN SUPERMARKETS
10.02.2009


Harris, Tom

That this House congratulates those supermarkets which continue to accommodate post offices within their stores; deplores the decision of those supermarkets which have excluded long-established post offices from their premises, often for purely commercial reasons and without regard for their customers' convenience or for alternative post office provision in the local area; and calls on local planning authorities throughout the country to impose conditions on any new supermarket development that would oblige the applicant to offer to accommodate a post office within any new store and to guarantee an appropriate minimum period during which the post office's tenancy rights would be guaranteed.

Labour Party
Dhanda, Parmjit
Harris, Tom
Hoyle, Lindsay
James, Sian C
McDonagh, Siobhain
Sarwar, Mohammad

[saunders265]

All very well, but what happens when they slide into insolvency as has happened to five ex-Crown Offices in the South West? And more to the point, what happens if WH Smith fail? And I wonder what effect the recession has on our leaders thinking about the possibility of transferring more Crown Offices to them?

One thing's for sure - we will be the last to know!

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Changed:
- Signatures( 6)
... into:
+ Signatures( 18)

Added:
+ Reed, Andy
+ Hendrick, Mark
+ Jones, Lynne
+ Lepper, David
+ Mahmood, Khalid
+ McCafferty, Chris
+ Meale, Alan
+ Corbyn, Jeremy
+ Dismore, Andrew
+ Anderson, Janet
+ Battle, John
+ Vis, Rudi

[TrueBlueTerrier]

INDEPENDENT
Davies, Dai
Open: 1 Closed: 0

Labour Party

Anderson, Janet
Battle, John
Corbyn, Jeremy
Cryer, Ann
Dhanda, Parmjit
Dismore, Andrew
Drew, David
Gerrard, Neil
Harris, Tom
Hendrick, Mark
Hopkins, Kelvin
Hoyle, Lindsay
James, Sian C
Jones, Lynne
Lepper, David
Mahmood, Khalid
McCafferty, Chris
McDonagh, Siobhain
Meale, Alan
Reed, Andy
Sarwar, Mohammad
Turner, Desmond
Vis, Rudi
Williams, Betty
Open: 24 Closed: 0

Liberal Democrats

Hancock, Mike
Open: 1 Closed: 0

[Lounge Lizard]

All very well, but what happens when they slide into insolvency as has happened to five ex-Crown Offices in the South West? And more to the point, what happens if WH Smith fail? And I wonder what effect the recession has on our leaders thinking about the possibility of transferring more Crown Offices to them?

One thing's for sure - we will be the last to know!

I've heard a few people suggest that W H Smiths might be going the same way as Woolworths.
Is there any basis for such comments ?

[bigjames]

Don't recall any exact details, but it was widely reported before the WHSmiths deal with POL that they were struggling. I can't remember if they had made a loss, but I seem to remember something about profit warnings and negative growth (A phrase that tickles me!). As that was a couple of years ago, I am pretty sure that a combination of their high prices and the current economic climate can't be doing them any favours. I do know that they replaced a lot of their DVD/Music departments with the Post offices they bought because they were being soundly thrashed by the likes of Zavvi, HMV and the internet. Perhaps the demise of Woolworths and Zavvi may give them a boost. In my home town the choice in a lot of products has been greatly reduced with Woolies gone, but there still lots of cheaper alternatives to WHSmiths. The only reason I go in there is generally to get magazines which are not available anywhere else.

[saunders265]

Who will go first, WH Smith, or The Bank of Ireland?!Perhaps we shall all end up in B&Q...

[DGP1]

Who will go first, WH Smith, or The Bank of Ireland?!Perhaps we shall all end up in B&Q...

B&Q are in trouble too so they will be of no use but Pizza Hut and KFC are doing really well so we may see POs opening in them

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Who will go first, WH Smith, or The Bank of Ireland?!Perhaps we shall all end up in B&Q...

More likely DWP or as it used to be known DHSS, especially if the privateers and profit only junkees have their way.

[saunders265]

Not too keen on Pizza, but love Kentucky Fried Chicken. I reckon I could sell a Credit Card with each Bargain Bucket, whilst chewing on a Hot Wing, kept discretely behind the printer...

[DGP1]

Not too keen on Pizza, but love Kentucky Fried Chicken. I reckon I could sell a Credit Card with each Bargain Bucket, whilst chewing on a Hot Wing, kept discretely behind the printer...

Not so much of a case of 'Do you want fries with that?' but 'Do you want insurance with that?'

[bigjames]

I love Kentucky Fried Chicken, but if they sold Credit Cards you would have to check them carefully - the one and only time I paid for my Variety meal with my Debit Card - It was cloned!!!!

I was at a meeting today, and someone reasonably high up in Post office Financial Services was talking to us about the Bank of Ireland, and if she is to be believed, The Bank of Ireland are not as much at risk as the press would have us believe. They may have taken a cash injection from the Irish Govt, but they were a cash-rich bank to start with as they avoided investing in Irish Commercial property developments which is what caused the problem with Allied Irish Bank. Apparently BOI have been a lot more cautious than some of their competitors and have not been hit anywhere near as hard.

[saunders265]

Bank of Ireland Share Price 26 February 2007 - €18.35
Bank of Ireland Share Price 26 February 2009 - €00.27

Does the person "high up in Post Office Financial Services" hold Bank of Ireland shares? I hope not... Two years ago she could have sold one and had a rather nice meal in Kentucky Fried Chicken. Now she could just about buy a second class stamp...

[saunders265]

I love Kentucky Fried Chicken, but if they sold Credit Cards you would have to check them carefully - the one and only time I paid for my Variety meal with my Debit Card - It was cloned!!!!

I was at a meeting today, and someone reasonably high up in Post office Financial Services was talking to us about the Bank of Ireland, and if she is to be believed, The Bank of Ireland are not as much at risk as the press would have us believe. They may have taken a cash injection from the Irish Govt, but they were a cash-rich bank to start with as they avoided investing in Irish Commercial property developments which is what caused the problem with Allied Irish Bank. Apparently BOI have been a lot more cautious than some of their competitors and have not been hit anywhere near as hard.

PS.
"The government has injected €3.5 billion ($4.5 billion) into each of the country’s two largest banks, but this has not impressed markets. Shares in Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland have fallen sharply. After the bursting of the property bubble, more than €7 billion may be needed to cover bad loans to developers."

Source:
http://www.economist.com/world/europe/d ... d=13185013" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bigjames]

I did say 'IF she was to be believed'!!

Bank of Ireland are a bit like Lloyds TSB, in as much as they were slightly more cautious about who they lent money to. I think all banks share prices have tumbled recently, both here and in Ireland, but the thing that will cause problems with banks is largely specualtion about whether they have or have not got a problem. If I understand the situation correctly (it is some years since I did economics at school!) Northern Rock only had a problem because customers withdrew all of their money because they were worried there might be a problem. The problem itself didn't exist until someone put about a story suggesting there might be a problem and then bang! you have a self-fulfilling prophesy. The same type of crazy speculation led to normally rational people drawing out all of their money from High Street banks to put it into National Savings. The irony there being that the Government has had to use a load of public money to shore up the banks, and one of the places that the Government gets money from is the sale of National Savings! In just 2 days last year we sold £5million of National Savings accounts, that's enough to pay the RBS bloke's pension for 5 years! Nice work if you can get it.