Royal Mail seeks stamp price rise (BBC 27/02/07)

monkey · Post by **monkey** » 27 Feb 2007, 08:25

BBC NEWS wrote:Royal Mail is asking for a 6 pence increase in the price of UK stamps to stem losses and ensure its survival.
The changes are part of proposals put to regulator Postcomm this week. Royal Mail also wants to change the rules governing franked business mail.

At present the Royal Mail is losing 6p on each stamped letter it delivers, and is facing increased competition.

Should the price increases be agreed, then a first-class stamp would cost 38p and a second-class stamp 29p.

Timeframe

What is not clear, however, is when the Royal Mail would implement the price increases, and what effect they would have on the current pricing agreement with Postcomm that runs until 2010, the BBC's business editor Robert Peston said.

Under that deal, the Royal Mail can still increase stamp prices.

The changes would have a significant effect on the firm's universal service obligation (USO), which dictates that a first or second class stamp must ensure a letter is delivered to all addresses throughout the UK.

The USO was reviewed by the regulator last year and is in place until 2010.

According to the Royal Mail, it can no longer make up the shortfall in its consumer service by charging businesses more as the higher rates would mean it lost out to rivals.

The Royal Mail also wants an end to restrictions on profitable bulk business mail, such as junk mail.

"This is not scaremongering in any shape or form," the Financial Times reported Royal Mail's chief executive, Adam Crozier, as saying.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/b ... 399565.stm

Published: 2007/02/27 07:45:41 GMT

Post by **POSTMAN** » 27 Feb 2007, 14:02

Where's the Fozzmeister ffs.
Isn't this just going to make things worse?if we're more expensive,then we'll lose even more and quicker wont we?

Actually just read it again does this only mean 'Stamps' so it doesn't affect the other suff,or not

The public won't be happy!

monkey · Post by **monkey** » 27 Feb 2007, 14:10

Looks to me like *might* only be consumer rates that we're putting up, which is fantastic seeing the business mail subsidises the domestic mail.

No doubt the press will take the angle that we're "holding the public to ransom", but this, if me and you Postman, are interpreting this correctly, is long overdue.

johno47 · Post by **johno47** » 27 Feb 2007, 18:56

It costs 45p in ireland to send a letter, that is the true cost, what it should be, business and bulk mail subsidise our price, so if all these so called competitors had to deliver to all the people that live in the middle of nowhere, i wonder how many of them would want to take on a universal delivery, answer no one, lets have fair competition.

Geordie · Post by **Geordie** » 27 Feb 2007, 19:45

spot on johno.

If I remember correctly we are the second cheapest in Europe, but are one of the few open to competition.

monkey · Post by **monkey** » 27 Feb 2007, 20:14

We're the second cheapest in Europe behind Spain, and I beleive around the 4th best, quality-of-service-wise