Tag: UK

Royal Mail loses contract with Amazon

Posted by | Jun 19, 2007 | |

Royal Mail today confirmed that online retailer Amazon has decided it will move its Second Class mailings, worth £8m, from Royal Mail.

Royal Mail said, “We’re very proud to work with Amazon and the loss of such a significant piece of their business demonstrates very clearly that Royal Mail’s higher costs, directly caused by our failure to fully modernise our operations, are costing us business. It’s vital that we urgently change and modernise if we are to be able to compete against more efficient rivals who have already done so.

“At the same time our customers are being threatened with disruption because of strikes – strikes which are aimed at preventing exactly the modernisation that could keep our big customers on board.

“Customers like Amazon are critical to us, and to our competitors. They represent an important area of growth in a market which is otherwise declining as fewer items of mail are sent.”

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Liberal Democrats support for preservation of Universal Service Obligation

Posted by | Jun 18, 2007 | |

Lib Dem MP Robert Smith voices Lib Dem support for preservation of Universal Service Obligation at debate at Westminster Hall.

Speaking on a Lib Dem motion of the Universal Service Obligation in Westminster Hall, MP Alistair Carmichael pointed out the importance of a debate on Universal Service Obligation “following the recent application by the Royal Mail for zonal pricing for bulk mail, on which consultation with Postcomm has just concluded.”

Mr Carmichael expressed his concern that if Royal Mail’s application for zonal charging for bulk mail is approved, bulk mail will be removed from the universal service.

He suggested: “What is left will hardly be worth the name. It will hardly be universal and it will barely be a service.”

Lib Dem MP Danny Alexander also expressed his concern that the government, and Postcomm, are pressing ahead with the opening up of the mail market without first ensuring that there are adequate safeguards in place to protect the universal service.

Lib Dem Sir Robert Smith, speaking for the Liberal Democrats, made clear that “the present situation has come about because of the opening up of the letter market, which was the result of European Union regulations and the decision to open up the whole of the European market-albeit not at the pace that it is happening in the UK.”

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TNT Express UK will expose on CSR Summit to focus on reduction of carbon footprint

Posted by | Jun 18, 2007 | |

One of the highlights of the 4th CSR Summit, which takes place at the Dusit Hotel in Dubai on 24 – 28 June, will be a presentation by TNT Express, UK.

Mike Patrick, TNT’s Corporate Social Responsibility Director, will impress on regional corporations the need to implement and integrate a sustainable and environmental stewardship programme into their CSR strategy to reduce their environmental footprint.

TNT was the first of the UK company’s nationwide network of depots and offices to receive the coveted international environmental standard IS0 14001, ‘green’ certification. This was achieved after employees embarked on a programme to minimise their impact on the environment by conserving energy, recycling materials and preventing pollution.

The campaign aims were to conserve energy, cut pollution, recycle waste, and train lorry drivers to adopt the latest fuel-saving techniques when behind the wheel of their vehicles, clearly demonstrated their commitment to the achievement of one of their corporate social responsibility objectives, that of commitment to reducing pollution to the environment.

Not only is the green approach better for the environment but it is also saving TNT hard-earned revenue at Wellingborough. By re-using and recycling wooden pallets, they have reduced waste disposal costs by up to 32 per cent and they have cut the amount of paper used by almost 11 per cent, year-on-year.

In all this year’s CSR Summit features 41 speakers from 17 different countries, with the programme split into four main categories mirroring the key principles of CSR; Promoting CSR In The workplace; Positioning CSR In The Market; Contributing To The Community and Emphasising Global Warming And Climate Change And Their Impact On Business.

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Up for auction . . . 75,000 items that were 'lost in the post' by Royal Mail

Posted by | Jun 17, 2007 | |

Royal Mail has admitted selling off thousands of items that got ‘lost in the post’ to help meet its running costs.

The troubled company sells the contents of about 75,000 undelivered packages every year, at the risk of enraging hordes of customers already frustrated that their post has gone astray.

Even customers who paid over the odds for premium ‘secure’ services to cover valuable items have been shocked to find their goods put up for auction, in an operation that could be netting the postal giant millions of pounds a year.

The scandal was exposed by retired teacher John Beattie after he discovered that a set of antique bagpipes, which Royal Mail had lost, were for sale on internet auction site eBay.

He had originally sold the rare 1910 Henderson bagpipes to a fellow collector in Belgium for Pounds 1,500 last July, and despatched them using the Royal Mail’s Airsure premium airmail service, described as ‘fast, secure and reliable’.

Although the package was correctly labelled, it vanished without trace.

However, in March this year a friend spotted the bagpipes online.

It turned out that the package had spent three months languishing in the national undelivered mail centre in
Belfast, before the Royal Mail sent it to Surrey auctioneers Wellers.

In turn, they sold the bagpipes to an online bidder for Pounds 60. The instrument then turned up on eBay, advertised by a man in the Glasgow area.

Wellers has an exclusive contract to sell Royal Mail’s undelivered post, but senior auctioneer Glen Snelgar refused to comment on their arrangement.

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Royal Mail eyes last-gasp talks

Posted by | Jun 17, 2007 | |

Royal Mail has written to conciliation service Acas, offering to meet the Communication Workers Union (CWU) ahead of a proposed strike. The company insisted it was not making any concessions, but was seeking to again explain its position.

Last week Royal Mail insisted that the organisation could not afford to improve its 2.5% pay offer, despite staff voting for strike action.

The CWU is due to set dates for a series of national walkouts.

“Royal Mail is contacting Acas, not to make any concessions in our position, but to try to explain to the union once again the very serious challenges the business now faces in an open, competitive market,” a spokesman said.

The CWU has said the strikes will go ahead unless a breakthrough is reached.

However both sides have said they are keen for fresh talks.

If a nationwide postal strike does go ahead, it would be the first since 1996.

About 77% of Royal Mail’s CWU members who took part in a ballot voted for the strike action, on a turnout of 60%.

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