Post Office Outreach Funding To Be Examined

Following concerns by the Business and Enterprise Committee, the National Audit Office is to begin a detailed analysis of the financial support available for UK post office outreach services. The Committee is concerned that outreach services which are already replacing many rural post offices, would ultimately fail through lack of funding.

The Committee demanded clarification on the relationship between Post Office Ltd and Royal Mail as well as Royal Mail’s service expectations from Post Office Ltd, plus a detailed breakdown of exactly how Royal Mail determines the cost of such services against the actual costs as delivered by Post Office Ltd.

Alan Cook, managing director of Post Office Ltd, told the Committee that Royal Mail paid Post Office Ltd, which then paid subpostmasters for the work they did. The arrangement is somewhat unique in that Post Office Ltd is a subsiduary of Royal Mail yet is unable to raise its prices to combat growing costs.

Peter Luff, chairman of the said earlier this year:

“In 2007-08 Post Office Ltd received GBP 358 million for providing mail services to the Royal Mail Group. We heard from the managing director of Post Office Ltd that this was not enough cover the cost of those services.

It is possible that this is down to inefficiency at Post Office Ltd, but it is also possible that it is because Royal Mail Group is inappropriately using Post Office Ltd, which receives some state support, to cross-subsidise its mail services.” he said.