FUTURE OF THE POST OFFICE

That this House notes, but opposes, current proposals further to reduce massively the Post Office network; doubts that these proposals retain a publicly-owned, readily accessible Post Office and has no confidence in the current management of the Royal Mail to deliver this, added to its new obsession of cutting out vital sorting offices such as Gloucester and Reading; and calls on the Government to re-state its belief in a publicly-owned Post Office, to make sure that it has sufficient resources, to require all larger carriers to meet the universal service obligation so that there is a level playing field and to support each local community that has a post office to develop appropriate strategies to keep post offices' vital services open, including appropriate use of social enterprise models.