Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I accept that point but there can be a domino effect. I am concentrating on Broadford because it is right next door to me and I know it well. If the people getting their social welfare in Broadford go to any of the other locations, they take with them their bit of business as well. It can have an impact on shops so it is not just about the postmaster but the businesses around that post office. It is also about the older and more vulnerable people who would find this a bigger task. In Broadford people might drive a mile or two into the village. They might not want to drive to Tulla or Kilkishen because there would be more cars and it might be considered more daunting. Although I use the term in a jocular way, An Post is robbing from these people the opportunity to live an active and self-fulfilling life and affecting the viability of the local shop.

Will the witnesses look again at the sub-post office model and the potential to enhance the service with PostPoint, as has been mentioned? Will An Post find a way to include the payment of pensions and social welfare? In a place like Broadford that may not be a huge chunk of money; quite frankly, it was not and if it had been, the post office would have been more sustainable and viable. It is not beyond the realms of a local shop to manage those transactions. An Post has very good financial models and methods of ensuring that all of this is appropriately audited.

I ask the witnesses to look again at locations below the model of populations of 500 and the idea of an enhanced PostPoint service or maybe a post office with reduced bells and whistles. This could deliver social welfare payments. Some of that may come from some of the profits we all hope the company can continue to make in the years ahead. That would bring sustainability and support for less than viable businesses. It would really enhance An Post's reputation and provide future viability and sustainability for many villages that we are all working so hard trying to protect and maintain.