Mark Isherwood
Local concerns regarding the closure of a Flintshire village Post Office have prompted North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood to call for Welsh Government action to help safeguard post offices run by a sub-postmaster or independent operator.
Mr Isherwood, Shadow Communities Minister, was contacted by residents of Mynydd Isa after the Spar supermarket, which houses the post office, announced that it is to close. Mr Isherwood has been in communication with the Post Office at senior level in Wales accordingly and this week raised the problem during a question to the Communities Minister on the safeguarding of post offices
He said:
“As you indicated, this is primarily a UK Government responsibility, although, clearly, you have had the Post Office Development Fund support over the last two Assemblies. The UK Government has committed some £2 billion to ensuring that the network stays open and that we support the 11,500 plus post offices and access to services in communities.
“However, concerns are regularly raised that when a sub-postmaster or independent operator retires or closes their business, other operators or people do not come forward regularly to apply. What discussions have you, therefore, had with the Post Office to identify what those barriers might be and to see how the Welsh Government could possibly help them overcome them?”
The Minister said he has had discussions with Post Office Limited and the National Federation of SubPostmasters on this matter.
Mr Isherwood added: “This was raised for instance, by constituents in Mynydd Isa and in Brymbo, in north-east Wales, with a successful outcome in Brymbo. However, only 20 of the post offices in Wales are Crown Post Offices, and the wider concern, therefore, is about delivering sustainability. As part of that, for the last 11 years, since I have been in the Assembly, we have heard the Welsh Government and the post office talking about working with credit unions and delivering services in post offices. The Welsh Government and the UK Government are supporting funding for sustainability in credit unions, and also, as you have just indicated, there is the push to deliver sustainability in post offices. When are we going to see action to turn that rhetoric that we all support into real services in our communities?”
The Minister replied: This is something that I am actively engaged in, both in terms of discussions with the sub-postmasters, and, indeed, with the credit union movement, to see how we can get the best delivery of key public services on a one-stop-shop basis where that is possible.”
