National Audit Office report on UK post offices published

Postwatch welcomes the National Audit Office (NAO) report into the
Department of Trade and Industry’s financial support for post offices.

The report sets out the problems facing the post office network, and in
particular, how changes to pension and benefit payments and customer
shopping habits have put considerable financial pressures on many post
offices. In this light, the NAO’s recommendation for continued business
advice and assistance for subpostmasters is to be welcomed.

The NAO confirms Postwatch’s concern that the introduction of pilots in
rural areas by Post Office Ltd (POL) has thus far not progressed
sufficiently swiftly. In the coming months, POL needs to take significant
steps forward in exploring innovative delivery mechanisms that meet rural
customers’ needs.

Crucially, the document highlights the urgent need for the government to
make clear what it wants from the rural post office network. Financial
support may be in place for the medium-term, but subpostmasters and
customers alike need to know that the government has a clear, positive
vision for rural post offices’ long-term role. Postwatch has raised this
issue in the past with the government, and we will continue to do so.

The report also identifies potential long-term problems in the urban
network, despite Post Office Ltd’s ‘urban reinvention’ programme, which
involved closing over 2,500 post offices throughout the UK.

Peter Carr, Chairman of Postwatch, said:

“Decisions to close urban post offices have been dominated by
sub-postmasters volunteering to leave with compensation. This will create
gaps in the remaining network, which will reduce access for some customers
and test its viability in the future.

“The programme to upgrade the remaining post offices to cope with a higher
level of demand needs to be accelerated – the government made £30 million
available for this and less than £10 million has been spent in 2 years.”

Further Information

For more information please call Robert Forsyth on 020 7259 1364 or 07900
263014, or Daryl Barrett on 020 7259 1239 or 07900 263020

Notes to Editors

1. The full report can be found at www.nao.org.uk