Brake fears impact as London is hit hard by Post Office Closures

12.23.40pm GMT Tue 19th Feb 2008

The Royal Mail today announced that 170 Post Offices in London will close as part of the network change programme. This is 20% of London's Post Offices, commenting, Tom Brake MP, Liberal Democrat Spokesman for London, expressed his concern that the city has been unfairly hit by the Royal Mail who have failed to take into account London's population growth.

"This proposal is preposterous; it ignores the needs of Londoners, millions will be disadvantaged simply because they do not have the time to travel to a Post Office somewhere else. One-fifth of London's network will be closed; this is radical surgery in a city which is experiencing rapid population growth. Who can predict how many post offices we will need in one or two years time. If premises are shut now, the chances of them, or other premises in a similar area, being available again should they be needed in the future are very slim."

"I am surprised however that whilst 'closed' signs are going up in Post Offices across our capital city, all three post offices within the Parliamentary Estate have remained open. Whilst I understand that these are Crown Offices, which were not included in the consultation, I cannot fathom why, when MPs have three post offices within 100 metres of each other, and some people have none within a kilometre of them, the latter were shut. It seems as though Members' Priority Service has won the day again."