Save our Post Offices
February 14, 2004 12:00 AM
By Sarah Teather in Asian Voice
By Sarah Teather in Asian Voice
Local residents back the Save our Post Office campaign
I have been thoroughly angered recently by the Post Office's threat to close yet more local post offices in Brent. Seven local Post Offices in Brent are facing closure. This is a real body-blow for local residents. Only a few months ago, a Crown Post Office on the Kilburn High Road was closed despite a vigorous campaign against the closure by local residents and myself. Hundreds of people signed a petition protesting against the closure.
The local post office provides an invaluable community service and its importance to local residents cannot be over estimated. Post offices are vital for those who need to collect benefits and pensions and I fear that these closures do great damage to those most vulnerable in our society. But they are also important for the vitality of the high street and local businesses.
Local Post Offices are so important for local businesses; they play a vital role in community life. When Post Offices are closed many small businesses around them suffer through a loss of trade. Often local people get money out of the post office and then spend it in local shops. Post Offices are often the backbone of local communities. The Post Office network forms the hub of the local community - in some areas they are the only remaining retail outlet and must be protected.
When we lose the post office in one area, shoppers who would previously have collected their benefit and then bought at shops nearby, find they must get on the bus or tube to collect their money and local businesses suffer as a result. I fear that many local businesses will suffer a loss of trade if these Post Offices close. If the Labour Government wishes to encourage small businesses then it should stop the closure of our local Post Offices.
What annoys me most about the closures is the consultation process beforehand. Hundreds of local people joined with me in protesting against the closure of two Post Offices in Brent. Yet the views of local people were thrown out of the window by the Post Office and the Labour Government.
In a meeting in November at Brent Town Hall the General Area Manager of the Post Office told me he had complete confidence in their consultation process. How can this be? When the views of local people are completely ignored. These consultations are nothing more than a sham.
Tony Blair said:
"Britain's Post Offices are a vital part of the fabric of the country.…. Especially in rural areas, and in disadvantaged parts of our towns and cities, post offices play an important role in communities across the country: keeping services going, supporting the vulnerable, acting as a focal point. The Government values the Post Office network. We want to see it thrive."
Yet, under this Labour Government 3,000 local post offices are set to close. If Tony Blair and the Labour Government really valued our local Post Offices they would stop the closures and safeguard our Post Office network.
You can sign a petition against Post Office closures here http://www.brentlibdems.org.uk/petitions.php
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