SOUTH DORSET MP SUPPORTS POST OFFICE PRIVATISATION PLANS

Despite the promise in Labour’s 2005 election manifesto (pg 21 “no plans to privatise” its services & supporting “a publicly owned royal mail”) Mandelson today introduced a bill in the Lords setting out a programme of part privatisation.

Beware ! The Dutch firm TNT which has offered to buy up a third of the service has just spent a year contesting the German government’s introduction of a minimum wage for all postal workers & only a week ago reported a 37% drop in its fourth quarter profits.

Royal Mail however in the nine months to Christmas 2008 made a profit of £225 million.

Part of the problem facing the industry is the 13 year pensions holiday started in 1990 & therefore the responsibility of both Tory & Labour administrations – seeking to save money by ignoring the pensions time bomb in their midst.

Needless to say, Jim Knight is not one of the 140 Labour rebels who have signed an Early Day Motion in protest at the plans.

Liberal Democrats would like to see the following arrangements made for Royal Mail:
Re-opening the 3500 Community Post Offices closed by the Tories & the 4000 closed by Labour; allowing employees in Royal Mail to become shareholders following the John Lewis model;commiting any future government to retaining the network as a public service;
ensuring the contracts for pensions & benefits would stay.

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