Post Office Network

Part of Business of the House – in the House of Commons at 12:24 pm on 14 December 2006.

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Photo of Owen Paterson Owen Paterson Shadow Minister (Transport) 12:24, 14 December 2006

The Government have made it as difficult as possible for benefit recipients to carry on with the card account, putting more than 20 obstacles in the way. As a result, £300 million of income was taken away, which put the whole network in jeopardy. For example, the BBC confirmed this week that it switched to PayPoint because

"the Post Office has a declining network and could not offer...any guarantees as to the number of branches likely to remain open".

This is a catalogue of cack-handed incompetence on the part of a Government who have not co-ordinated at the centre. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that he works with other Government Departments to make sure that fresh Government products will be offered to the post office network?