news story

29th May 2008

Local MP Steps Up Rescue Bid for Post Office on Cuts List

Following today's announcement by the Post Office confirming plans to close three post offices in the Northavon constituency, local MP Steve Webb is stepping up his efforts to work with one of the threatened post offices to put together a rescue package.

Under Post Office plans, confirmed today, the planned closures of sub post offices at Tytherington, Old Sodbury and Station Road, Yate will go ahead. But Lib Dem MP Steve Webb has already had meetings with community leaders and post office managers to consider options for a locally financed deal to save the office at Tytherington, where it is based in a community shop.

Commenting on the closures, Steve Webb said:

"The depressing thing about the whole consultation process was that we always knew that if we got the post office to change their mind about one of the offices on their list they would simply substitute another one. As soon as the Government decided that 2,500 offices had to go, the die was cast.

"What the Government should have been doing was building up the post office network and helping it to find new sources of business, not undermining it at every turn. As a result of this decision, yet more communities will lose something very special".

But the MP said he was now working with Tytherington Parish Council, the village shop committee and the local sub post mistress to try to put together a rescue package. He said:

"I have already hosted a meeting with post office bosses and community leaders from Tytherington to see if we can now find a way of keeping this community post office going in some way.

"We have signed paperwork with the post office so that they will supply us with detailed financial information and we will do everything we can to see if a way forward can be found to rescue at least one of the threatened post offices".