CONSIGNIA, the renamed Post Office and one of Britain’s biggest employers, will be split into two companies under a radical proposal being examined by the government.
Ministers are considering a plan to merge Royal Mail and Parcel Force into one company and put Post Office Counters (POC), which runs the network of 17,800 regional post offices, into another. Each company would have a separate board and management structure.
Read MoreBritain’s postal service is facing the biggest shake-up in its history. By John Waples and Rupert Steiner.
LAST JULY, in the early hours of a Monday morning, a group of senior directors from Consignia, the renamed Post Office, drove to the five-star Pennyhill Park Hotel in Bagshot, Surrey, for the group’s annual think-tank session.
In their briefcases they carried copies of the latest trading figures, which showed targets had been missed, costs had spiralled and -in the new deregulated environment -competitors were chiselling away at its business. They painted a picture of a service in rapid decline, and each executive was aware that tough decisions needed to be made over the course of the next two days.
Read MoreVirgin Express, the low-fare airline controlled by Sir Richard Branson, is to hold talks with the Belgian government this week on its possible involvement in the restructuring of the Belgian aviation industry following the filing last week by Sabena, the national flag carrier, for protection from its creditors.
Virgin Express, which itself has shrunk to half its previous size following a heavy restructuring earlier this year to overcome previous losses, is not in a position to engage in any rescue attempt for Sabena
Read MoreConsignia wants to halt dividend payments to the Government, expected to total about Pounds 150 million, while it struggles with financial difficulties that this week led to the announcement of 15,000 job cuts. The renamed Post Office group has asked the Department of Trade and Industry and the Treasury to consider waiving dividend demands while it tries to cut costs by Pounds 1.2 billion.
Read MoreThe planned expansion of Frankfurt airport is causing a major headache for Deutsche Post AG, the German post office. Deutsche Post has been using night flights at Frankfurt airport for 40 years, and 9 million letters are transported through the airport every night between 11pm and 1.30am, with twelve aircraft bringing in and taking out post to different parts of the country.
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