Tory MP Philip Davies blasted the Post Office after it was revealed that the Royal Mail’s letter delivery service could be cut in half to just three days a week as an industry watchdog warns the postal service is currently “unsustainable” without reform.
Ofcom said Britain’s universal postal service “must modernise” amid a proposal to scrap Saturday deliveries.
Davies said: “I think this is the Royal Mail trashing their own brand.
“What on earth is the point of them if you can’t rely on posting letters? The cost of a stamp now is astronomical.
Philip Davies slammed the Post Office
GB News
“It’s not as if people aren’t paying through the nose for stamps. I get the fact that fewer people are sending letters now as more people do emails and all. I get all that.
“But it seems to me that this is just a managed decline. It’s it’s like a sort of General Ratner moment for the Royal Mail. It’s trashing its own brand which will make the whole thing pointless.”
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Ofcom regulates the Royal Mail and they said that the postal service could make cost savings of £100 million to £200 million if letter deliveries were reduced to five days, and £400 million to £650 million if reduced to three days.
GB News host Bev Turner said: “There was a spokesperson for the over 60s group The Silver Voices, he said, ‘I think Ofcom’s response is pathetic, they’re being a really weak regulator’.
Deliveries could be cut to three days a week
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“They’re rolling over to what Royal Mail wants as opposed to maybe defending the public.”
Turner asked Davies for his view, where he admitted to being “not the biggest fan of Ofcom.”
He said: “I’m not the greatest fan of Ofcom. It has to be said.
“So you’re not going to hear me defending Ofcom.
Ofcom regulates the Royal Mail
PA
“I agree that Ofcom should be there. They’re not there to look after the interests of the company. The whole point of the regulator is to look after the interests of the consumer.
“You would think it seems quite extraordinary that Ofcom will take this approach.”
As reported by ITV, Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes said: “Postal workers are part of the fabric of our society and are critical to communities up and down the country.
“But we’re sending half as many letters as we did in 2011, and receiving many more parcels. The universal service hasn’t changed since then, it’s getting out of date and will become unsustainable if we don’t take action.
“So we’ve set out options for reform so there can be a national discussion about the future of universal post. In the meantime, we’re making sure prices will remain affordable by capping the price of second-class stamps.”
