Tag: Europe

Sharp differences between the Royal Mail and ministers over the postal operator’s business plans have spilt into the open, hampering talks over whether to pour more than Pounds 1bn of public money into the state-owned company. The Department of Trade and Industry believes Allan Leighton, Royal Mail chairman, needs to produce a firmer, more detailed and more credible business strategy before the government can agree to provide any financing.
There is uncertainty over the detail of the postal operator’s plan to give employees a stake in the company, a scheme that has been touted by Mr Leighton but which is opposed by the postal workers’ union and many Labour MPs. Ministers have made clear they are still waiting to see a well-argued case that the scheme would boost productivity. Yesterday, the DTI confirmed there had been “exploratory talks” about the share scheme but added that it had “not received robust or firm proposals on (it) as yet”. However, Royal Mail re-jected the suggestion that its proposals lacked detail and robustness. “We have submitted a very detailed, well-argued case for investment in the company, which is still with the government,” the company said. “The employee share scheme is an integral part of the case.”