Devon County Council supports rural post office

From the North Devon Gazette website:

Devon County Council has said it deplores the scale of the post office closures and outreach services that were announced by Post Office Limited this week.

Councillor Brian Berman, the council’s Executive Member for Communities… [said]: “The county council confirms its willingness to invest in achieving sustainable post office services for the affected communities.”

As a priority, the council would like to see post office services retained or enhanced:

- In areas where growth in the size of communities is planned or likely.

- Where there are high levels of deprivation and where the loss of a post office could further disadvantage vulnerable people.

- Where the closure would threaten the viability of the only shop in the community, an associated business or other local businesses.

- Where closure will lead to a significant increase in road journeys to access post office services.

As our campaign will make clear, Buckland Brewer ticks all these boxes.

More press coverage

Mopping up some of the press coverage of Devon closures from last week:

• BBC News – Devon closures
• ITV – Westcountry News (should be a video link, with any luck)

Post office closures challenged

A disabled woman in Sussex has challenged the Post Office’s nationwide closure programme. Her legal challenge, which will be heard by the High Court, is based upon the Disabilities Discrimination Act. Disability campaigners have argued that the closure programme violates the law because it discriminates against the disabled.

This is a narrow point of law and probably will not save every post office threatened with closure. But, it does show that campaigning is not a fruitless cause.

BBC News – Disabled women to challenge closure decision

Katie shows how local shops can survive

You may recall that last year, Barnstaple-born Katie Hopkins, who appeared on ‘The Apprentice’ TV programme with entrepreneur Alan Sugar, visited Buckland Brewer to help troubleshoot our shops cash flow issues. She reported for BBC – Inside Out:

Katie Hopkins tells how she changed things around in this web exclusive interview…
“Village Post Offices have always been a matter of contention. Old people seem to love them.

“Young people don’t use them. Governments want to rationalise them. And locals fight for them.”

A direct result of Katie’s advice was longer opening hours and more shop promotions. She showed that local shops can carve a niche and compete with the big supermarket chains.

Head of Royal Mail paid £2 million

The head of the Royal Mail, parent company of the Post Office Ltd is being paid £2 million, reports the Guardian.

Royal Mail’s chief executive, Adam Crozier, will receive a near-£2m payment this summer under the company’s long-term incentive plan, according to the annual report published yesterday…

Billy Hayes, general secretary of the Communication Workers Union, said: …”This is an outrageous use of public money at a time when post offices and other Royal Mail offices are closing and postal services are being cut back. Adam Crozier is again being rewarded for managing decline instead of improvement in the company. This is a massive insult to Royal Mail employees and the public…”

Royal Mail’s chairman, Allan Leighton, defended the payout. “The payment covers three years during which the group, led by Adam and the team, has consistently exceeded expectations and met all the targets set by the shareholder…”