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How changes in U.S. Postal Service will affect you

Posted by | Jan 7, 2007 | |

The first comprehensive reforms of the U.S. Postal Service in 35 years was signed into law by President Bush Dec. 20. The principal sponsor of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act in the House was Rep. John McHugh, R-Pierrepont Manor, who fought for the measure for 12 years.

Here’s what the bill means to you:
1. The cost of mailing a letter
The bill prohibits the Postal Service from raising its rates above inflation for the next 10 years. Only an independent regulator can allow higher increases.
2. The cost of Express Mail, Priority Mail and parcels.
– The Postal Service will be given pricing freedom for these products, which compete against shippers such as UPS and FedEx.
– The legislation prohibits the Postal Service from regulating areas in which it competes.
3. Universal service
The Postal Service will be required to give everyone in the nation access to affordable postal service and delivery. The Postal Service must assess scope and standards for universal service, which could ensure continuance of rural post offices.
4. Saturday delivery
Likely to continue.
5. Incentives for better service
– The Postal Service would no longer operate under a break-even mandate.
– Any earnings could be distributed as incentives to management and employees.
6. Oversight
For the first time, regulators can hold the Postal Service accountable for delivering mail on time.

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Rural group backs UK Post Office closure plan

Posted by | Jan 5, 2007 | |

Plans for the reorganisation of the rural postal system that include the closure of 2,500 post offices have been welcomed by a group of rural campaigners.
The plans were announced to Parliament before Christmas by trade and industry secretary Alistair Darling. He said the restructuring was needed “to protect the national network”.
He said a GBP1.7 billion support package would be provided to maintain GBP150 million-a-year payments to the rural post office network until 2011. In addition, up to 4,000 fee-free cash machines will be rolled out to help customers in areas hit by the closures, he said.
To offset the closures, he said the Post Office would set up 500 “innovative outlets” for small, remote communities, including “mobile post offices and services in village halls, community centres and pubs”.
Sylvia Brown, chief executive of Action for Communities in Rural England, said the present system of post office support was unsustainable. She said: “We want the post office subsidy transformed into a contribution towards a genuine investment plan to help retain access to a range of services within rural communities.
“We are pleased that the minister recognises the future of post office services may lie in combined delivery with pubs, shops or village halls hosting services and sharing premises to reduce overheads.”

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ING Group under negotiations to provide products through India Post

Posted by | Jan 5, 2007 | |

According to the Hindu Business Line, Dutch financial services firm ING Group is in negotiations with the Department of Posts in anticipation of providing life insurance products through the India Post network.

The global financial institution has been actively seeking to expand its distribution network to support its joint venture ING Vysya Life Insurance Company, in which it holds a 26% stake. At present, ING has already established a tie-up with Japan Post for the distribution of its services to support its Japanese joint venture and hopes to replicate this with India Post. However, almost all life insurers are in a race to obtain additional tie-ups. The Indian alliance would also generate an additional income for India Post, increasing its revenues. Cited in the Hindu Business Line, ING sources are said to have confirmed the discussions but refused to comment further on details regarding its status and progress.

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Statement may allow government to open mail in the United States

Posted by | Jan 5, 2007 | |

A signing statement attached to postal legislation by President Bush last month may have opened the way for the government to open mail without a warrant. The White House denies any change in policy.

The law requires government agents to get warrants to open first-class letters. But when he signed the postal reform act, Bush added a statement saying that his administration would construe that provision “in a manner consistent, to the maximum extent permissible, with the need to conduct searches in exigent circumstances.”

“The signing statement raises serious questions whether he is authorizing opening of mail contrary to the Constitution and to laws enacted by Congress,” said Ann Beeson, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union. “What is the purpose of the signing statement if it isn’t that?”

Beeson said the group is planning to file a request for information on how this exception will be used and to ask whether it has already been used to open mail.

White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said there was nothing new in the signing statement.

In his daily briefing Snow said: “All this is saying is that there are provisions at law for _ in exigent circumstances _ for such inspections. It has been thus. This is not a change in law, this is not new.”

Postal Vice President Tom Day added: “As has been the long-standing practice, first-class mail is protected from unreasonable search and seizure when in postal custody. Nothing in the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act changes this protection. The president is not exerting any new authority.”

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Royal Mail discounts business post

Posted by | Jan 5, 2007 | |

Royal Mail is to introduce new volume-based discount schemes for business mailers from 2 April. While it’s difficult to get excited about a stamp (franking mark or PPI), the new postal prices mean it’s time for businesses to review their mailing contracts again.

Personal mail, such as letters and birthday cards, make up only 10% of the mail delivered in the UK by Royal Mail. The rest is made up of business mailings to other businesses, and to consumers, and consumer post to businesses.
Postcomm Chairman Nigel Stapleton said, “Full competition is off to an encouraging start in 2006 with 18 new operators now in the market. Many large mailers, both in the private and public sector, have switched to new operators who they have found to be reliable and sensitive to their specific needs. Everybody has benefited because, in response to competition, Royal Mail has delivered record service levels.”

A Postcomm survey in October found that mail prices had reduced significantly for 20% of businesses as a result of the increased competition in the postal service.

“We are committed to offering discounts to customers who give us mail that can be sorted by our machines, rather than by hand. These items cost us less to handle so it’s right that we reflect this in the prices we charge those customers,” said Lorna Clarkson, Royal Mail’s Director of Commercial Policy and Pricing.

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Royal Mail rejig creates one of the UK's largest print tenders

Posted by | Jan 5, 2007 | |

Royal Mail Group has launched a tender for its entire print requirement, worth up to GBP400m after restructuring its print management division.
A new unit of about 25 staff, Royal Mail Document Management Services, went into operation on 1 January to handle the Post Office operator’s complete print output.
Royal Mail has also advertised a four-year print management contract worth up to GBP100m per year as part of a bid to streamline its current roster of 79 UK-based print suppliers.
The postal giant is planning that the contract, one of the biggest print tenders ever to reach the UK market, will be won by either a single company or a consortium of firms.
Print involved will include point-of-sale, posters, business documents, labels and internal publications, while other functions, such as finishing, storage, fulfilment, scanning and indexing, repro and digital archiving, are also involved.
Print management sources have suggested that only business process outsourcing giants Williams Lea or Astron would have the financial clout to take on such a large contract alone.
The tender was published in December and includes work for Royal Mail’s three UK operations: its letters business, the Post Office’s retail and financial services, and Parcelforce Worldwide.
Until the contract is set up in late spring or early summer, the new unit will handle all Royal Mail’s print production requirements itself.

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Why postal privatisation delivers

Posted by | Jan 4, 2007 | |

Who would have though that this time last year, it was predicted that Royal Mail would lose over £600m worth of business by 2008, as a result of the postal market opening to competition on January 1 2005.

The claim, which could almost have come out of Royal Mail chairman Allan Leighton’s very own spin-machine, was actually made in an independent study by Corporate Mailing Matters.

The research, in which 300 top UK business mailers were quizzed on how they expected volumes to shift after deregulation, claimed 17 per cent of the market would to move to alternative providers, with corporate mailers shifting swathes of business to force price reductions and service benefits.

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Post Danmark buys 51 per cent of Transportgruppen

Posted by | Jan 4, 2007 | |

Post Danmark A/S and Transportgruppen A/S have entered into an agreement concerning the purchase by Post Danmark of 51 per cent of the shares in Transportgruppen by direct placement. The shares will be acquired with effect from 1 January 2007.

By this agreement, Post Danmark will become the most complete carrier in the Danish market. A cooperative venture with the carriers of Transportgruppen will enable us to offer our customers a total concept covering courier shipments, parcels and mixed cargo of all sizes and of a high quality as hitherto. In addition, it will make it possible for us to offer a range of new products, says Carsten Dalbo, Deputy Executive, Post Danmark.

The purchase of the shares in Transportgruppen will give Post Danmark access to a finely meshed and efficient nationwide network for the distribution of goods. In the same way as Post Danmark, Transportgruppen has cargo centres at its disposal at Brøndby and Taulov in addition to 80,000 sq. metres of warehouse facilities in Copen-hagen and Århus. Via its carriers, Transportgruppen has access to 18 regional cargo terminals and 900 rolling units. In 2006, Transportgruppen generated a turnover of approx. DKK 280 million and some 1,100 people are employed with its carriers and in the company.

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