Royal Mail is speeding up the closure of 3,000 urban post offices by a year. The programme had been due to end in December 2005 but is now being brought forward 12 months to reduce the uncertainty facing sub- postmasters, said Royal Mail’s chairman Allan Leighton.
Read MoreMail bosses are to be asked to stop delivering junk mail by a Glasgow MSP. Tory Bill Aitken said today so many advertising fliers – and unsolicited letters – were being pushed through letterboxes they were fast becoming a “very real nuisance”. He warned they created a security problem when left sticking out of doors because they indicated the householders could be on holiday. Mr Aitken has written to Royal Mail chiefs asking them to reconsider whether they should accept contracts to deliver junk mail. He also urged advertisers to think again about whether the junk mail approach to selling was worthwhile. A Royal Mail spokeswoman said they had a legal obligation to carry mail and pointed out direct mail brought in money and helped keep Post Office workers in jobs.
She said anyone who didn’t want to get direct mail should contact the Mailing Preference Service, which will filter out mailshots which are of no interest.
Read MorePost Office branches will sell a comprehensive range of financial services as part of a sweeping commercialisation of the UK’s network of branches, Allan Leighton, chairman of Royal Mail revealed today (Tuesday) at the National Federation of Subpostmasters conference in Scarborough. The first, an unsecured personal loan, will go on sale from October with a national roll out targeted for January/February 2004. Mr Leighton said: “Post Office reinvention is now truly underway, and David Mills, the Chief Executive, and I want it to be based on the entrepreneurial skills of our subpostmasters backed by new products, new incentives and new advertising. We are determined to put our Post Office branches on a better financial footing, by giving customers the products they want and letting subpostmasters get on with the job of running their branches to suit their customers.
Read MoreRoyal Mail’s decision to stop using rail from next March could land the company in court. UK rail freight operator EWS provides train services to Royal Mail under a 10-year contract that runs to September 2006. EWS planning director Graham Smith told IFW that although the company did not want to go down the legal route, Royal Mail had “a genuine commitment to honour this agreement”. EWS operates 49 trains a day for Royal Mail across the UK rail network, hauling 20m items, including 25% of all firstclass mail. The traffic represents 10% of EWS’s business.
Read MorePostcomm today issued its fourth long term licence to UK Mail Ltd. The licence, for a minimum period of seven years, will enable the company to provide consolidation services for business customers. UK Mail Ltd currently holds an interim postal licence for similar services. This will be revoked by consent.
Read More
Post & Parcel Magazine is our print publication, released 3 times a year. Packed with original content and thought-provoking features, Post & Parcel Magazine is a must-read for those who want the inside track on the industry.
