CampaignsPost OfficesGovernment accused of lacking vision over Post Office closures Government accused of lacking vision over Post Office closures
06/03/2007
Leading older people’s charity Help the Aged has accused the Government of lacking vision on creating sustainable communities as it fails to take decisive action over the Post Office cuts programme.
They say that “The Post Office network is in danger of facing death by a thousand cuts with older people suffering most as a result”.
As the Department for Trade & Industry consultation into the future of the beleaguered network closes this week, the charity has set out key objectives for ministers to preserve a truly national network that better serves vulnerable and isolated pensioners.
Help the Aged has highlighted key areas of policy which Ministers have been challenged to accept, including the need for Post Office branches to become vibrant community hubs and “one stop shops” where advice and help with a range of issues can be sought.
While accepting the need for change in the way Post Office services are delivered, the Charity wants any closure programme to be more carefully thought through to combat the steady creation of “un-served communities” without shops, banks or other key facilities.
David Sinclair, Senior Policy Manager at Help the Aged said: “The Post Office network is in danger of facing death by a thousand cuts with older people suffering most as a result.
“Increasingly, we are seeing the gradual erosion of viable communities up and down the country, as critical local services cease to exist on the high street. When Post Office and bank branches close, older customers are left without the lifeline they need to withdraw pensions, pay bills or simply interact with other people.
“While Help the Aged welcomes this consultation exercise and accepts that limited closures are unavoidable, Government ministers must try to inject some ambition and imagination into their thinking. Commercial pressures may well be intense, but with some creativity, the DTI can lead a renaissance of the Post Office rather than sound its death knell.”