Axe set to fall on 2,500 post office in UK
The closure of 2,500 post offices is expected to be confirmed today when the British government publishes the results of a consultation exercise on the future of the network.
Plans for restructuring offices and preserving a nationwide network are expected to be outlined by ministers.
More than 2,000 responses were received from pressure groups and members of the public after the government announced last December that 2,500 post offices will close over the next few years.
Groups representing pensioners and rural communities have argued that wide-scale closures should be avoided, arguing that many post offices provide a lifeline for local residents.
The National Consumer Council said the government’s decision on the future of the postal network must ensure long-term access to services for the 24 million people who rely on them every week.
Spokeswoman Nicola O’Reilly said: “The Post Office often provides much valued services to vulnerable people and those in rural and deprived communities.
“Only a strategy that joins up policies on social and financial inclusion, sustainable communities and looks beyond 2011 will work for consumers.”
The consumer council and other groups have told the Government that a local consultation period of 12 weeks was needed for people to submit their views before a post office closed rather than the current period of six weeks.
Sub postmasters have also been pressing for a replacement Post Office Card Account to help preserve much needed business for local offices.
Help The Aged said the Government needed a “dynamic vision” for the future of post offices.
Mervyn Cohler, head of public affairs, said millions of people – especially the elderly – valued the importance of post offices and said the Government announcement about the future of the network was “keenly awaited”.
He added: “By its own actions the Government has contributed to the woes of the Post Office and now it must show that it has a dynamic vision for the future of this important public service.”
He warned that older households were particularly vulnerable to post office closures because many did not have access to a car or the internet.
Meanwhile, council leaders said post offices facing the axe could be taken over and run by local authorities.
The Local Government Association (LGA) called on the Government to draw up plans to help local councils safeguard postal services.
This would include running post office counters from public buildings such as civic centres, leisure centres and libraries.
Many councils are already involved in providing post office services with examples of counters being set up in pubs and libraries.
Sandy Bruce-Lockhart, chairman of the LGA, said: “Councils are committed to creating places where people can thrive as part of a community.
“If the Post Office decides that a branch has to close then local authorities would want to step in to make sure people can continue to access the services they expect and need.”
