Thousands of Post Offices Set To Close

10.03.35am GMT Fri 15th Dec 2006

Cornwall's 5 Liberal Democrat MPs have condemned today's Government announcement that 2500 Post Offices are set to close.

Since 1999, one in ten Post Offices in Cornwall have closed - with over two thirds of these taking place in rural areas. This follows a policy initiated by the Conservative who also presided over thousands of PO closures when they were in government.

Cornwall's five Liberal Democrat MPs have been campaigning against further closures, submitting a petition to save local post offices, signed by almost 5000 Cornish residents, to Downing Street earlier this year. The MPs have also released a report, 'Catching the Last Post?', detailing the damage done by the Government's continuing failure to protect Cornwall's post office network.

Commenting, Julia Goldsworthy, who challenged the Minister on the effects that the announcement would have on local communities said:

"With the Government set to rip the heart out of rural communities by closing thousands of post offices nationwide, it is clear that the recent talk about developing sustainable communities has been nothing but empty rhetoric. The Sustainable Communities Bill, which I am co-sponsoring, would ensure that local communities would have greater power over what services they need.

"The Post Office is at the heart of many of our rural villages, and plays a vital part in ensuring these communities are economically, socially and environmentally sustainable. The government's announcement today means that where post offices close, many vulnerable people will be left isolated and unable to access important services.

"The announcement demonstrates just how out of touch with our rural communities the Government is. It has to look beyond the economic bottom line and recognise the vital social role that our post offices play in our towns and villages."

Matthew Taylor, MP for Truro & St Austell and Liberal Democrat Spokesman for Social Exclusion added:

"The announcement of thousands of post office closures is further proof of the Government's inability to understand life in Cornwall. Firstly, the Minister claims that people do not use the post office as they used to. 97% of the Cornish customers we surveyed visit their local Post Office at least once a week, and almost a third of these visit daily.

Next, the Minister implied that the Post Office Card Account is increasingly irrelevant. Over half of the people we surveyed in Cornwall who have bank accounts still choose the Post Office Card Account as their preferred way of collecting their pensions and benefits. It is true that post offices have lost some customers but that is because the Government have forced more and more people to use bank accounts for their pensions and benefits. This has saved the Department of Work & Pensions hundreds of millions of pounds, which would have otherwise kept the post office as a sustainable business. The cost of keeping post offices open is small compared to the savings the Government have made.

Finally, the Minister has ignored the fact that for disadvantaged and socially excluded groups local post offices often provide a lifeline. In Cornwall the vast majority of post offices are rural, and many isolated communities and groups, particularly the elderly, disabled and others without access to a car, depend on them."