Post Office Closures : Latest News
January 8th
The current list of post offices earmarked for closure are
Branches earmarked for closure are:
- East Princes Street, The Post Office, East Princes Street, Helensburgh
- Gallowgate, Gallowgate, Rothesay
- High Street, The Post Office, High Street, Campbeltown
- Hillfoot Street, The Post Office, Dunoon
- Kirn, The Post Office, Dunoon
- Mossfield, Combie Street, Oban
- Ralston Road, 125 -127 Ralston Road, Campbeltown
- Anderston, 76 St. Vincent Terrace, Glasgow
- Auchenback, 60 Aurs Drive, Barrhead, Glasgow
- Balornock, 34-36 Drumbottie Road, Glasgow
- Bowling, 32 Dumbarton Road, Dumbarton
- Brucehill, Brucehill Road, Dumbarton
- Carmunnock, Clarkston, 17 Busby Road, Carmunnock, Glasgow
- Croftfoot, 509 Castlemilk Road, Glasgow
- Crow Road, 304 Crow Road, Glasgow
- Drumchapel, 135 Garscadden Road, Glasgow
- Forge St, The Post Office, Forge Street, Glasgow
- Gilshochill, Glenavon Road, Glasgow
- Govanhill, 328 Allison St, Govanhill, Glasgow
- Greenbank, 29 Eaglesham Road, Clarkston, Glasgow
- High Street, 271 High Street, Glasgow
- Hyndland, 37 Clarence Drive, Glasgow
- Kelvindale, Kelvindale Mini Market, 361/367 Kelvindale Road, Glasgow
- Kingsridge, 55 Inchfad Drive, Drumchapel, Glasgow
- Levenvale, Co-Op Store, Argyle Street, Alexandria
- Muirend, The Post Office, 367 Clarkston Road, Glasgow
- Newton, 107 Glasgow Road, Dumbarton
- Nithsdale Rd, 8 Kildroston Street, Glasgow
- Radnor Park, 379 Kilbowie Road, Clydebank
- Red Road, 51 Red Court, Glasgow
- Sandymount, 18 Grantlea Terrace, Glasgow
- Springfield Rd, 98 Springfield Road, Glasgow
- Temple, 58 Fulton Street, Glasgow
- West End, 125-127 Dumbarton Road, Glasgow
- Bothkennar, Main Street, Skinflats, Falkirk
- Brightons, Quarry Brae, Brightons, Falkirk
- Church Street, 206 King Street, Stenhousemuir, Larbert
- Cultenhove, 104 Cultenhove Road, Stirling
- East End, 161 Main Street, Callander
- Forth Crescent, 36 Abbey Road, Riverside, Stirling
- Greenhill, 2 Lea Park Drive, Bonnybridge
- Highland Dykes, 66 Wheatlands Avenue, Bonnybridge
- Nethermains, 4 Fleming Court, Denny
- Thornhill Road, 192 Thornhill Road, Falkirk
Argyll & Bute
Greater Glasgow
Central Scotland
December 4th
GOVERNMENT DEMANDED FREEZE ON HIGHLY SENSITIVE CLOSURES
WEIR – LABOUR CONCERNED ABOUT BALLOT BOX, NOT POST BOX
SNP Postal Affairs Spokesperson, Mike Weir MP, has today (Tuesday) condemned the UK Government’s interference in the post office closure consultation process after receiving the copy of a letter sent by Post Office Limited which explicitly states that the Government have asked for a “freeze” on “highly sensitive” closures pending the local elections in England
The letter goes on to say that the consultation processes in Edinburgh, the Lothians and Central Scotland will be delayed for four weeks after Post Office Ltd’s proposals had to be revisited.
Commenting on the letter, Mr Weir said:
“From the beginning this consultation process has been deeply flawed, and now it is in complete disarray.
“To explicitly demand a freeze on the consultation process in England and Wales shows Labour are only concerned about the ballot box, not the post box.
“This issue is far too serious to be treated with this kind of cynicism, and the whole process, right across the network, should now be suspended.
“The Minister must also explain when he took the decision to defer the consultation process. We have always known that the English local and municipal elections were going to take place next May, why was this not considered before the original consultation programme was announced?
“This interference by the UK Government shows what a complete sham this process has been. Local communities and authorities must have a fair chance to challenge the proposals over the future of this essential local service.”
Contact SNP Westminster Press: 0207 219 0074
The text of the letter sent out by Post Office Limited is set out below:
20th November 2007
Dear
At the Network Change Roadshows earlier this year, we promised to keep you up to date with all developments affecting the Programme and the expected impact on you Post Office branches . I am now writing to inform you of changes to planned activity in Scotland that effect one of Scotland's local area plans.
Your branch is contained within the North east Tayside and Fife local are plan. Attached to this letter you will find a table that confirms when the Area Plan for your branch is being considered.
London Municipal elections and local authority elections in England and Wales will be held in May 2008. As you will be aware, the closures of any Post Office can be highly sensitive and can potentially become a local political issue.
For that reason, we have been asked by Government to introduce a freeze on some elements of the network Change Programme during the run up to these elections. Specifically, we shall not be running any public consultations nor making any final closure decisions, in the period immediately prior to elections from April 7th to May 2nd 2008.
Although Scotland is not directly affected by these elections, we have had to revisit all our plans. We have also reconsidered information presented to us about the difficulty for some local authorities being able to respond fully as the programme was due to commence public consultation for one of the local area plans at the end of July 2008.
We have therefore decided to delay public consultation by 4 weeks for one of Scotland’s area plans, that for the Edinburgh, The Lothian’s and Central Scotland area plan. This means that the programme for this plan will now commence at the end of May 2008. Please remember that you will not receive a visit from a Field Change Advisor if your branch is unlikely to be affected by this programme. Affected branches are those that
- likely to close
- are likely to become Core or Outreach branches
- might receive a significant number of new customers as a result of nearby closures
If you have any questions about these changes, please contact the Network Change Programme Office on 0207 354 7174
Your sincerely
Sue Huggins
Programme Director on behalf of Post Office Ltd
November 29th
WEIR DEMANDS CLARIFICATION ON ILLOGICAL POST OFFICE CONSULTATION PROCESS
Speaking in the House of Commons today (Thursday) SNP Postal Affairs Spokesperson, Mike Weir MP, has demanded clarification from the UK Government on the post office closure consultation process.
Mr Weir commented:
“Local campaigners in the West of Scotland have been told that if one post office is saved from closure another will simply be closed in its place. This approach completely lacks logic since the substituted post office was, presumably, originally thought to be essential in the first place.
“It is not at all clear what will then happen in terms of public consultation. The six week period is totally inadequate, and we need to know whether the new target post office be subject to a further six week period or whether it simply be shut without consultation?
“This whole consultation process is a complete shambles and the UK Government urgently need to step in and stop closures until these issues are addressed, and a proper consultation process is put in place.”
November 22nd
POST OFFICE CONSULTATION SHAM
LABOUR DEFER ENGLISH CLOSURES UNTIL AFTER LOCAL ELECTIONS
SNP Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Spokesperson, Mike Weir MP, has today (Thursday) described the Post Office closure consultation process as a sham, and called on the UK Government to defer the whole process after it emerged that consultation on closure threatened Post Offices in England and Wales will be put back until after the local elections next year.
Commenting on the development, Mr Weir said:
“The Labour Government have displayed extraordinary cynicism over the future of the post office network. News that the Gordon Brown’s Government is now set to defer the closure process in England until after the local election, shows what a complete sham this whole exercise is.
“This puts a lie to the claim by the Government that the consultation process is being operated by Post Office Ltd and is free from political interference. The UK government can, and do, interfere in the process when it suits them.”
“It is clearly unfair that post office’s south of the border have been given a stay of execution, while those in Scotland will be rushed through on a completely inadequate timetable.
“This is a double blow given that campaigners in Glasgow have been told that if a post office is saved by a local campaign then another in the area will simply be targeted instead. Ministers must step in and stop this nonsense now.
“The whole consultation process, right across the network, should now be suspended. Local communities and authorities must have a fair chance to challenge the proposals over the future of this essential local service.”
Contact SNP Westminster Press: 0207 219 0074
A transcript of Mr Weir’s exchange with the Postal Affairs Minister, Pat McFadden, is detailed below:
Mike Weir MP: “Post Office Ltd has made clear to campaigners in Scotland that if a Post Office is saved after a local campaign, then another Post Office in the same area will simply close instead. Will this not pit community against community, and does it not demonstrate that the whole consultation process is a sham, and confirm that Post Office Ltd has engaged simply in an exercise to cut the network – an exercise, incidentally, that is pressing ahead in Scotland despite reports in many areas of England that the process has been put back until after the local elections in May.”
Pat McFadden MP: “Mr Speaker, the announcement on 17th May made clear that the size of the network would have to reduce, there is no secrecy about this. The local consultation process that he referred to is how this will be done. It is true that the network must reduce in size, and this is accepted by the Federation of Sub-Post Masters, and is also accepted by most witnesses to the Trade and Industry Select Committee when they examined this issue.”
November 21st
Comments from Mike Weir MP:
“This attempt to defer bad news until after the local elections is nothing less than blatant gerrymandering by Labour Ministers.
“This puts to lie the claim by the Government that the consultation process is being operated by Post Office Ltd and is free from political interference. Only this morning the Minister for Postal Affairs, Pat McFadden, said that matters relating to the consultation were a matter for Post Office Ltd, but this is clearly not the case.
“It is also clearly unfair that post office’s south of the border have been given a stay of execution, while those in Scotland will be rushed through on a completely inadequate timetable.
“The whole consultation process, right across the network, should now be deferred until after the elections, and until local communities and authorities have a fair chance to challenge the proposals over the future of this essential service.”
October 24th
Post Office Counters Ltd called SNP Headquarters this morning complaining that we had revealed over 250 post office branches in Scotland could be closed, as the final total has not yet been officially announced.In the last eight years, over 4,000 post office branches have already been closed. The BBC report that in December 2006, Royal Mail claimed they could operate a 'viable service' after closing a further 10,000 branches, almost two thirds of all UK Post Offices.
As many as 3,000 Post Offices will be closed across the UK under the latest cull. With a higher than average share of small, rural post offices and closures targeting deprived communities, Scotland will be hit hard. When Post Office Counters announce an exact figure, we'll update our site. Until then, join our campaign to maintain a strong vibrant post office network.
October 23rd
Following the publication of the first round of post office closures in Scotland, which will see forty-four Post Offices close across Glasgow, Central Scotland and Argyll, SNP Trade and Industry Spokesperson, Mike Weir MP, has today (Tuesday) met with Royal Mail officials to discuss concerns.
Mr Weir said:
“The extent of these cuts is worse than expected, and it is particularly disturbing that these closures will impact on some of the most deprived areas hardest.
“We cannot forget that Post Offices provide a lifeline local service, and if these closures go ahead it will undermine both the economic and, in many areas, the social heart of communities.
“The scale of this first round of cuts clearly raises serious fears about the extent of the next round. Indeed, today’s announcement shows the thinking that Post Office Ltd are using, which though encouraging for remote areas, seems set to bring bad news for urban areas, and closely scattered towns and villages.”
