| Post Office Battle Begins |
| Thursday, 10 January 2008 | |
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John Pugh will meet with Post Office officials next week to discuss the ''Southport Area Plan" proposals which could see more of of the town's Post Office's closed - an outcome the MP has vowed to fight. John requested a meeting with officials to discuss in detail what their proposals for the town will entail, ahead of the consultation period for the proposals which begins on January 22nd. John vowed to raise the issue of how concerned local people are at the potential loss of services, and urged people to make their voices heard when the consultation process gets underway. The MP commented: "This is a crucial period in the fight to save Southport's Post Offices. People in the town still rely heavily on the services they provide and keeping them open is vital. I'll be raising this at the meeting next week and I urge anybody who wants to see our Post Offices survive to get in touch with me before then. I want to show the Post Office that the people of Southport are united in their desire to save a service that is a vital lifeline to many people in the town." Post Office Ltd's 'Network Change Programme' will involve the compulsory compensated closure of up to 2500 branches across the UK. The 6 week local public consultation for the Southport plans is scheduled to begin on January the 22nd and the MP has urged local people to get involved. "People need to make sure their voices are heard. Southport can't afford to continue to lose such a vital service." added the MP. Some local post olffices, according to John, are embracing the e-bay age and acquiring new customers as more and more goods are sent by courier or through the post. "This is a rapidly growing trade but I am sure what many people would like is the ability to have internet goods left at the local office when they are out of work. People are never particularly happy having goods left in the porch or having to go up to the depot at Kew. I am trying to find examples of best practice that we can imitate so that local post offices can benefit." |