THOUSANDS of post offices will close, leaving many communities with little access to postal services, unless the Government offered more support, sub-postmasters said yesterday.

More than one in five of small sub-post offices, which are often family-run, have disappeared over six years as they have lost a steady stream of government business.

The warning came as thousands of sub-postmasters lobbied Parliament and handed in a petition to No 10 signed by four million people.

It is thought to be the biggest petition that has ever been presented to the Prime Minister.

At the end of last year there were 14,373 sub-post offices, down from 18,393 in 1999. Royal Mail has said that it could fulfil its basic licence obligations with only 4,000 offices. But the Government has dismissed this figure as too low because that would not give everyone reasonable access to services and because some post offices need to be preserved for a social role.

Post offices have lost much of their income because the Department for Work and Pensions has switched from paying benefits in cash to paying directly into claimants’ bank accounts, and because they can no longer sell items such as television licences.

In addition, the Post Office card account, a means of accessing benefits payments, is due to be phased out in 2010. Sub- postmasters see it as critical for getting people into post offices. Nearly 400 MPs have signed an early day motion tabled by Kate Hoey, the former minister, calling for the card account to be resurrected.

The Department of Trade and Industry said yesterday that the 800 least-busy post offices in rural areas had only about 16 customers a week. At present the more vulnerable rural network is supported by a £150 million-a-year subsidy but that is set to end in 2008.

Alistair Darling, the Trade and Industry Secretary, said that there will soon be a review of the post office network but its size needed to be adjusted. He told Radio 4 that it should not be reduced to the 4,000 level that Royal Mail said it could survive on.

Colin Baker, the general secretary of the National Federation of SubPostmasters, said: “The 28 million customers who use the post office every week are confused as to what the Government wants of the network and of the people who run it. The time is now overdue for ministers to decide.”

Royal Mail echoed Mr Baker’s demand. A spokesman said: “The Government needs to decide what size and shape it wants the network to be.”

Royal Mail lost £111 million on its post office counters business last year. The sub-post office network accounted for £61 million. Age Concern, Citizens Advice and community groups have lobbied hard for more support for post offices, saying that they are a social lifeline for many isolated people.

Post Office closures

1999-00
Total at year end 18,393
Net closures 382
2000-01
Total at year end 17,846
Net closures 547
2001-02
Total at year end 17,484
Net closures 362
2002-03
Total at year end 17,239
Net closures 245
2003-04
Total at year end 15,961
Net closures 1,278
2004-05
Total at year end 14,609
Net closures 1,352
2005-06
Total at year end 14,376
Net closures 233

Jobs that have been removed from the Post Office include:

Losses to Royal Mail last year were £111 million

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