Tag: Domestic

Ambulance service loses details of nearly million people

Posted by | Jun 23, 2008 | |

A computer disk containing details of nearly a million people who dialled 999 has been lost, an ambulance service has admitted.

The information was supposed to be couriered by TNT from Scotland to Manchester two weeks ago, but never arrived at its destination and a search has failed to find it since.

The disk contained records of 894,629 calls to the Paisley Emergency Medical Dispatch Centre (EMDC), near Glasgow, spanning from February 2006.

It included the names of some patients, addresses of incidents, contact phone numbers and some medical details.

TNT lost the disk on June 9 while it was being transferred to MIS Emergency Services, a Manchester-based company that supplies the IT system used in the service’s three emergency medical dispatch centres.

The information contained on the disk was to be used in the development of the service’s command and control systems.

The loss is the latest in a series of data losses from government or local authorities. Last year, Chancellor Alistair Darling admitted to MPs that disks holding personal information on 25 million people and 7.2 million families had gone missing, included names, addresses, dates of birth, Child Benefit numbers, National Insurance numbers and bank or building society account details.

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Royal Mail pays GBP 4 million compensation to customers

Posted by | Jun 23, 2008 | |

Royal Mail paid GBP 4 million compensation to customers in the first three months of the year as complaints rose to 4,200 a day.

The figure included GBP 2.7 million for lost mail, an increase of GBP 1 million on the previous quarter.

It also paid out for damaged goods, late deliveries, failures to redirect mail and letters sent to the wrong addresses.

The total of GBP 4,004,834 in compensation was up from GBP 2.6 million in the previous quarter.

The figures heaped further pressure on Adam Crozier, the company’s chief executive, as union chiefs called for him to go.

Last month it was revealed that, while his basic salary remained unchanged at GBP 633,000, Mr Crozier’s income rose to GBP 843,000 because of a performance bonus and other benefits.

Customers claiming for lost items can claim up to 100 times the 36p first class stamp or the market value of the item, whichever is lower.

Some of the increase in complaints against Royal Mail is thought to be due to industrial action over pay and the end of last year.

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CWU green lights more postal strikes (UK)

Posted by | Jun 19, 2008 | |

The Communications Workers Union (CWU) has voted for another round of strikes at Royal Mail, dealing a blow to the direct marketing industry after last year’s strikes cost the sector GBP 8m.
The decision comes despite the CWU’s resolution after last year’s strikes to concentrate on lobbying the government rather than resorting to industrial action.
The vote was held at last week’s union conference, where deputy general secretary Dave Ward called for the dismissal of Adam Crozier and Allan Leighton.
The decision to return to strike action was in response to pension changes, post office closures and job losses at Royal Mail. Last year’s strike action was a major factor in Royal Mail’s failure to meet operational targets.
The strike also put a major strain on the CWU’s finances amid falling membership numbers. The union admitted at last week’s conference that it needs to make some ‘difficult and unpalatable decisions’, and would be looking to identify savings in its budget.
However, the union stressed that it is still in a strong enough position to protect its members’ rights. CWU senior deputy general secretary Tony Kearns says: “Let Royal Mail – or whoever else – be in no doubt that if they take us on we will do whatever is necessary to ensure we are in a position to fight on behalf of our members.”

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Postcomm consults on licence for Mr Wesley Pollock (trading as Scotpost) (UK)

Posted by | Jun 19, 2008 | |

Postcomm today began a 30 day consultation on the proposed grant of a postal operator’s licence to Mr Wesley Pollock, a sole trader trading as Scotpost.

Under the licensing framework that took effect from 1 January 2006 and was amended in January 2008, the licence would:

– allow Mr Pollock to provide all types of postal service;
– be issued for a rolling ten year period; and
require him to comply with codes of practice on mail integrity (safety and security of the mail) and common operational procedures (designed to ensure the multi-operator market works well in practice).

The consultation notice and proposed licence can be found on the Scotpost consultation page.

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Estafeta adds two planes to cargo fleet

Posted by | Jun 16, 2008 | |

Mexican express operator Estafeta is expanding its fleet of cargo planes by adding two Bombardier CRJ jets with capacity of five tonnes, Mexican media reported.

The two new planes will operate on the routes from its San Luis Potosí hub to the northern cities of La Paz and Ciudad Juárez and on the east-west Villahermosa-Guadalajara route. They will replace smaller aircraft previously operated by third-party contractors.

The company’s operations director, Ricardo Becerril, stated that the two additional aircraft would enable it to carry larger shipments over longer distances, while also reducing the number of flights. The express operator currently has a fleet of five B737 cargo planes, which capacity of about 14 tonnes, flying to 12 destinations within Mexico and abroad.

Estafeta said that the two new aircraft were part of this year’s ongoing USD 30 million (EUR 19 million) investment in its air network and infrastructure. The bulk of the investment will go on a runway extension at its hub at San Luis Potosí in central Mexico that will enable international flight operations. Estafeta also plans to add a third small cargo plane, to open a new centre in Mexico City and inaugurate additional sites in Toluca, Morelia, Leon and Guadalajara.

“Although these are times of uncertainty, we are doing everything possible to maintain our programme of investment,” director general José Antonio Armendáriz was cited as saying. “We have always believed that at times of difficulties, investment supports job creation and contributes to the competitiveness of the country.”

Estafeta increased net sales by 13 pct to USD 250 million and carried 25 million shipments in 2007. It is targeting 15 pct revenue growth this year, partly to be generated through a new LTL trucking service covering Mexico and the USA.

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