The government must “wake up and intervene” to remove the threat of post offices closing, according to the Rural Independent Group of TDs.
Speaking at a press conference at Leinster House today (Tuesday, June 22), the leader of the Rural Independent Group, deputy Mattie McGrath stated:
“The serious warnings by the Irish Postmasters’ Union (IPU) about the inevitable collapse of the network, and up to 200 branch closures, are being ignored by the government, despite the government controlling the entire issued share capital of An Post.”
State intervention for post offices
The Rural Independent Group is calling on the government to address the issue of rural post office closures by providing tangible state intervention.
Deputy McGrath continued: “From July 1, the 875 postmaster-operated offices face a major challenge, due to a reduction of around 20% in government or state payments.
“Instead of the government trying to channel new state services through the post office network as promised in 2018, as sought by the [IPU], they are cutting existing services. Therefore, the demise of the network lies firmly at the door of the government.
“In 2016, my colleagues and I in the Rural Independent Group tabled a Dáil motion calling on the government to commit to a strategic five-year holding plan for the post office network, while also working on a new modernisation roadmap to support the rollout of new services, and ensure financial viability.
“At the time, we warned that government inaction would result in a complete demise of the network.
“Now five years on, the network is facing even more significant challenges, due to a complete failure of this and the last administration to do anything meaningful to combat the demise,” the deputy added.
Post office network
The rural independent TDs have said that the government is letting people down and that the main casualty will be rural and regionally-based postmasters, as well as wider rural communities.
Deputy McGrath continued: “We now need direct government intervention immediately. The time for pondering and self-absorption is long and truly over. Direct financial intervention is needed, together with a longer-term economic strategy to ensure survival.
“Should the government choose not to intervene, then they will be allowing post offices to close, knowing full well how vital they are for those living in rural communities.
“We are also calling for the immediate implementation of the Grant Thornton Report, which recommends urgent government investment for the post office network, with an annual Public Service Obligation [PSO] of €17 million.
“Keeping rural post offices open is essential to our wellbeing as a nation. They continue to function as vital meeting, resource and information centres, even with the rise of the internet and the advent of instant global communications,” deputy McGrath concluded.