Eamonn Maloney (Dublin South West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Mr. Mueller and his staff are very welcome. These are challenging times for the postal service, not only in this country but in other jurisdictions. I have been of the view for some time that while technology has been good for society, it has not been good to An Post or the Royal Mail. The advent of e-mail has completely transformed the way we communicate with each other.

A fact which is not widely known is that Ireland has the third lowest postage stamp rate in all of Europe. It is not popular to say so, but who cares? ComReg agreed to increase the price of a stamp from 55 cent to 60 cent, which still leaves us third lowest. Historically, An Post receives great publicity about its losses but the universal service obligation makes it very difficult not only to become viable but to break even. It is a very expensive contribution which is provided for from An Post's own revenues rather than from the Exchequer. I would be interested to hear what Mr. Mueller has to say about it.

ComReg has either threatened to sue An Post or already taken it to court.