Pete Wishart MP

Commenting Mr Wishart said:

"Since New Labour came to power in 1997 they have continued where the Tories left off by trying their hardest to dismantle this great company ready for privatisation.

"They have allowed the closure of hundreds of urban and rural post offices and now abandon those that remain by selling them off or cutting their main source of benefits business.

"I am not surprised that the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters have attacked the £1 billion loss as an 'outrageous betrayal'. Considering that many customers were told that they would be able to use the main post office, it was just more Labour lies.

"As the MP for Perth and North Perthshire, I am extremely concerned about this avalanche of retrograde moves and the impact they will have on both Perth city's Crown Post Offices but the rural sub-post offices in Perthshire."

Highlighting the threat to Dunfermline's Crown Post Office Douglas Chapman, the SNP candidate in the Dunfermline and West Fife by-election, said:

"I want to see the pride put back into local communities and post offices have always played a significant part in being focal points for communities. The Labour Government's proposals are yet another example of how communities are an afterthought when it comes to Labour government plans.

"As the local MP I would fight to ensure a better future for the town, and better services for local people - including the retention of our Crown Post Office."

ENDS.

Mr Wishart's Draft motion reads:

THREAT TO PUBLIC POST OFFICE SERVICE

That this House expresses deep concern for the future of a public post office service; notes the considerations by Royal Mail to shut down or sell off more than 160 High Street post offices including the Crown post offices in Scotland at Bathgate, Coatbridge, Dunfermline, Perth, Glasgow Hope Street and Dumfries; further notes that Her Majesty's Government has announced plans to axe the £1 billion contract which supports the Post Office Card Account and which is used by about four million pensioners every week; draws attention to the reaction of the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters who attacked this decision as an 'outrageous betrayal' that would hit the elderly hard; further draws attention to the concerns that these closures and changes would see elderly and disabled people struggling to get to branches further away, customers forced to rely on and pay for public transport to access branches and face longer queues and poorer facilities due to increased pressure on branches and see a fall in standard of local delivery services; and calls on Her Majesty's Government to reverse these plans or to bring forward an alternative to alleviate concerns about the loss of so many post offices seen as at the heart of so many communities.