Andrew Doyle, T.D. speaking about the Private Members Bill on the future of the Post Office Service as a public service came out strongly in favour of the ‘Front Office of Government’ role for the Post Office and its independence.
Deputy Doyle said “It goes without saying that the post office is an essential and much appreciated part of every Irish rural and urban community that has one, both for the post supplies and the welfare and financial services that they provide. It is also plain that the world has changed since the post office system was set up in the mid-1800s to provide a post and savings bank service to the public. Postal services are less in demand, and parcel and financial services have increased.
Although An Post have a welfare delivery contract with the Department of Social Protection for 2016, the future prospect of the role of the postal service in government service delivery is very unclear.
For this reason, the cooperation of all Government Departments with An Post and the PostWorkers Union is urgently needed to develop a creative approach to a new and viable strategy for the best use of the high class service, provided by a dedicated post office staff for local delivery. As the Post Office is of such local importance, the input of stakeholders, and the public is being requested. Lack of this coordinated effort is resulting in the franchise of post offices to multi-national supermarkets whose staff will not be vetted, or bound by the Official Secrets Act.
Andrew Doyle said “I welcome the commitment that the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources has made in the Dáil in proposing a ‘Front Office for Government’ role for the Postal Service for the twenty-first century, which will go along way to ensuring the post office will remain at the heart of every community in Ireland