CONSIGNIA, the beleaguered former Post Office, is heading for a fresh cash crisis due to fears that it will not have the Universal Bank up and running by its target date of April 2003.
The Universal Bank is intended to have the dual purpose of providing basic financial services for up to 6 million customers who do not currently have a bank account and also to boost the ever-diminishing revenue of Britain’s 18,000 Post Offices.
A COMPENSATION package worth Pounds 180 million has been earmarked by the Government for sub-postmasters whose businesses face closure. The scale of the package, which has been detailed at recent talks, suggests that more than 2,200 sub-post offices will close, mainly in urban areas.
Read MoreThe Amsterdam (Netherlands) based courier,express parcel and logistics conglomerate TNT Post Group (TPG) has restructured its express mail division in France.
The two business units TNT International and Jet Services have been merged. and the TPG division TNT Express now operates under the name TNT Express France. This business unit is
present at 130 locations across France. It has over 3000 vehicles at its disposal, which carry approximately 350,000 parcels and express shipments per week. The combined companies have a workforce of 4000.
TNT Express, which claims to be Britain’s leading business to business express delivery company, yesterday announced that it had invested over pounds 4 million in a parcel and document sorting centre at Lount in Leicestershire. Situated on a 12.5 acre site near the M1 and the M42, the complex was previously occupied by parcel carrier Panic Link which went into receivership last June. TNT said its investment would create over 200 new jobs for people in the East Midlands over the next two years and further strengthen its nationwide next-day hub and spoke delivery network.
Read MoreBusiness Post, one of the UK’s leading express parcel delivery companies, announces that it learnt yesterday that O.T.Computers Limited (trading as Tiny Computers) went into administration on 29 January 2002. O.T Computers Limited on an annualised basis accounted for approximately 3% of Business Post’s turnover, and the amount owed to Business Post is estimated to be approximately #0.3 million (net of credit insurance).
Read MoreThe biggest threat to the future of the Royal Mail, Consignia’s postal operation, lies in inertia. That is the clear message from Postcomm, which today publishes its proposals for opening the postal market to greater competition. The regulator has set out a tough but manageable four-year timetable for ending the monopoly that has allowed Consignia to stagnate as alternatives to the post proliferate.
Read MorePostcomm’s review of postal competition has been anticipated for many months but the speed of the regulator’s proposals to break-up Consignia’s monopoly has taken almost everyone by surprise.
Read MoreConsignia’s deteriorating financial position left Postcomm with a dilemma. It could introduce competition slowly to allow managers to prepare by improving efficiency or it could speed up the process to give consumers more immediate alternatives if the historic problems of the Post Office proved intractable.
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