Post offices across UK have just been saved - but big changes must happen now

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https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/21745 ... Royal-Mail

The beleaguered Post Office has been saved but it now needs to deliver on the faith it has been shown, argues Giles Sheldrick.

Could this be the turning point in the chequered 40-year history of the scandal-plagued Post Office?

The beleaguered state-run service has been on its uppers for years with diligent sub-postmasters bearing the brunt - both financially and emotionally - for a litany of top-down failings.

But from the rubble and ruins there is now hope.

Today the Government has announced it is keeping all 11,500 branches​ open.

The paradox here is that post offices - once viewed as analogue operators in a digital world - could now become the go-to destination as the major beneficiary of our deserted high streets.

But there is much work to do to deliver this once great institution from laughing stock into a first-class service.

First the good news.

That all branches will remain open is a boost to us all, not least those in isolated rural communities where post offices are a lifeline.

But this has to be a moment for root and branch reform.

In the vast majority of cases post offices barely wash their face.

The grim reality for postmasters - who are not employed by the Post Office - is they are paid a pittance for what they do.

They receive 25.5p for cash withdrawals over the counter, 5p for balance inquiries, and 38p for cash deposits. They also earn £1.25 per £100 of travel money sold. Additionally, there are different rates for mail and parcel services, with main branches often receiving a higher percentage of the price than local branches.

Very few people understand that the vast majority of private individuals are literally subsidising the Post Office out of their own pockets.

Using profitable businesses to prop up counters, milking private individuals to subsidise a state service, is clearly wrong.

With the explosion of online and out-of-town shopping independent shops have withered and died. Where once vibrant high streets could boast a greengrocer, butcher, hardware shop, newsagent and bakery, none now exist. Add to that list any number of banks and building societies, and pharmacies too.

Post offices now have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to become everything-under-one-roof shops.

But in order for them to be viable and profitable the Government needs to help.

The Horizon IT scandal - one of the worst miscarriages of justice in the UK - saw more than 900 sub-postmasters wrongfully prosecuted for having their fingers in the till. Thousands more were forced to make up for losses.

Some 59 inocent victims contemplated suicide with 10 attempting to take their own lives.

Reputations ruined, lives lost.

And still postmasters, treated appallingly by previous regimes, are forced to subsidise loss-making post and parcel services with retail offerings like mini-supermarkets and greetings cards and stationery sales.

One told the Express: “Our main concern is the financial viability of running a Post Office. Most postmasters’ retail businesses subsidise their post office and this is not right or sustainable.

“Post offices provide essential services to our communities, yet postmasters are paying for it.