Allan Leighton warned yesterday that he would walk out of the Royal Mail if the regulator continued to “interfere unreasonably” with his plans for restructuring the loss-making business. He also told a trade and industry select committee he would seek an immediate – albeit high risk – referral to the competition commission if Postcomm reacted negatively to a new plan for raising basic postage prices by 1p.
Read MoreA senior MP challenged Royal Mail’s repeated attacks on Postcomm yesterday by comparing the company’s rhetoric to that used by British Gas during the gas market’s liberalisation in the mid-1990s.
Martin O’Neill, chairman of the Commons trade and industry committee, asked Allan Leighton, Royal Mail chairman, whether this was not the “same self-serving defence of inefficiencies” used by any regulated company afraid of competition.
The challenge came as Mr Leighton stepped up pressure on the regulator by warning that its price control proposals could damage Royal Mail’s renewal plans.
Read MoreProfile of Allan Leighton.
Allan Leighton is sorting out Royal Mail and Leeds United, while keeping an eye on Bhs, Lastminute.com and a gyms business. Sophie Barker asks: how does he fit it all in?
Customers in a quarter of all postcode areas continue to receive a below minimum postal service, with less than 90% of their first class mail being delivered the next day, even when posted in the same postcode, according to figures published by Royal Mail today. Commenting on the figures, Peter Carr, Chairman of Postwatch said; “It is good news that Royal Mail’s overall performance for first class mail has improved but this cannot disguise the fact that a quarter of all postcodes, many in densely populated urban areas,
are receiving a substandard service.
Companies will be able to buy postage over the internet under a pilot scheme unveiled by Royal Mail (RM) yesterday. According to RM, the new service will be available to “selected customers” in January and February next year, and will be extended in the autumn if it is successful. Gillian Wilmot, managing director of mail markets, said: “We want customers to have a choice about how they access our products and services in a way that best suits them.”
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