Mr. Ned O'Hara:

I thank the committee for the opportunity to address it this afternoon. I thank Mr. Kerr for the work he has done. He has reminded us that almost 12 months have passed since the solutions to this problem were highlighted, but nothing has happened in the meantime.

I welcome the investment of €30 million in the post office network announced last week by the Minister, Deputy Naughten. Our understanding is that this €30 million will be divided between the universal service obligation mail business and the post office network. We are not clear on that. While we welcome the investment, it has to be prioritised as a matter of urgency. As the Minister has acknowledged in the Dáil, during the year that has passed since Mr. Kerr proposed his solutions, the individual incomes of postmasters have decreased at an alarming rate. The network is in danger of collapse. Individual postmasters cannot survive. We are looking for clarity on the breakdown of the investment. We do not know what the investment is for. As far as we are concerned, it must deliver sustainable news services in post offices. Postmasters cannot determine what services they provide. They depend on An Post and the Government to provide them with services.

The four-year transition mentioned by Mr. Kerr must be supported to enable postmasters to adapt to new commercial contracts that are agreed. The goal of keeping as large and as sustainable a network as possible open must be supported. It is not sustainable at the moment. We recognise that postmasters' contracts are in need of review. The allocation that has been approved by the Cabinet will go some way towards enabling this process to be agreed and completed. This investment should allow for an ordered review and an agreed plan for the future size of the post office network. A concern of ours is that it must not get diverted. We are aware of all the issues faced by An Post. We recognise all the solutions outlined by Mr. McRedmond. Our fear is that some of the investment will be diverted away from the post office network and will be used to address other issues in An Post.

I would like to remind people of the overall position. The people of Ireland regard the post office network as a national asset. It is a key resource in addressing many of the issues in rural and urban Ireland. We believe the service we provide represents good value for the people of Ireland. Postmasters are paid by transaction. Our firm belief is that any issues in An Post are not caused by postmasters and cannot be linked to the amounts of money paid to postmasters. The post office network can offer expanded and safe financial services and innovative social and community services. We are trusted. People want to use their post offices. They want them to stay open and to do much more. On a macro level, the postal industry is in decline but the demand for personal services has not changed. Communities should not be threatened just because the postal industry is changing. Some 30% of the transactions handled by postmasters at the moment are post office-related, some 55% of them are Government-related and 15% of them are commercially-related. The postal industry is in transition, but that should not threaten the demand and the need of communities for personal services in their post offices.

We want clarification on what happens next following last week's announcement by the Minister. We need full transparency and details. We need a breakdown of what this money is specifically for. Last week, the Minister said:

The €30 million which has been put into the company has been ring-fenced for the five day a week universal postal service in order that it continues to every address in the country and to support and develop services in the post office network. The nationwide reach of the post office network makes it uniquely positioned to act as a gateway to Government.

That statement does not clarify what the money entails for the development of the actual network.

We understand, but it has not been clarified, that the announcement involves €15 million for the post office network and €15 million to support the universal service obligation. We need clarity.

We also want to know the time period for the investment. This is not clear. We also want to know what new services are planned in post offices. The Minister has spoken about exploring the potential for extra Government business. Exploring the potential for extra Government business and delivering extra Government business do not sound urgent from our point of view. Mr. Bobby Kerr knows that from the first day we sat down with his group we spoke about the provision of motor tax services over post office counters. We recognise the service is going online, with 60% to 65% online, but we would regard this as an indicator of the Government's intention to do something for the post office network. We produced a report in 2014 which stated the Government could save €65 million over five years by allowing the post offices to provide a motor tax service. We are not looking for exclusivity, but we are looking for a signal that the Government is interested in saving the post office network. Exploring the potential for extra Government business, including motor tax, does not signal to us we will get motor tax any time soon.

A new pilot initiative, digital assist, will use local post offices as digital gateways for Government business. More that 12 months ago, we made a presentation to the Department with responsibility for rural affairs and provided a solution with regard to social services. We were promised that five pilot schemes would be up and running and €100,000 was allocated for them. It is 28 November 2017 and nothing has happened in this regard. When will motor tax be available for payment at post offices? What range of services will digital assist involve and when will they come on stream, other than that somebody is committed to exploring them?

At the announcement, key performance indicators were referenced. These are to measure the project referred to by the Government last week. We would like to know what are these performance indicators, in so far as they relate to postmasters, and how will they be measured. What is planned with regard to the renewal of the network? If there is a requirement to close any post office, and we represent every postmaster, we will only countenance any suggestion in this regard so long as it is on a voluntary basis. We have heard compulsory closures may be required. The business of any post office closed under such circumstances, that is involuntarily, must transfer to the neighbouring postmaster to ensure those offices have a sustainable future. They must not be siphoned off or encouraged off to a means other than the nearest post office. We also want clarity on what the announcement accounts for in terms of modernising postmasters' contracts. What is the vision of An Post and of the Government on the size of the network over the coming four to five years?

Resulting from the work we did with Mr. Bobby Kerr, postmasters believe a full range of additional State financial, social and community services can be provided, including all Government payments for the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection, motor tax, the HSE, the CAO, third level, fines, licences, all Government forms including electronic form completion, and identity verification. As we stated a year ago, postmasters are ideally placed to be peace commissioners. There are also counter transactions for all commercial banks. People throughout the country are up in arms about commercial banks closing and being robotised and there is a demand for personal service. With regard to remote health checks, a postmaster here today provides a video doc service in his post office in Ballymore Eustace because the doctor only goes to the village twice a week. People use that service. Post offices could also be used for transport information, bookings and meeting points. They could also be used for information and communications technology services. I have stated previously that the people to whom we speak regard this as the adult literacy issue of this age. People are crying out for information and training with regard to information and communications technology. We already provide citizens with tourist information unpaid on a voluntary basis.

Mr. McRedmond referred to the television licence. We read about the committee's proposal that the television licence be taken away from post offices. This will cost postmasters €3 million per annum. We regard this with alarm. We believe the Minister has proposed €15 million for the post office network, but €3 million of this has already been taken away by the recommendation of the committee.

The Minister announced a €30 million investment last week and we welcome this. It would be churlish not to. Many challenges are faced by An Post, and we need full clarity that the post office network allocation will not get diverted to addressing the other issues in An Post. Postmasters and the communities we serve need assurance, transparency, detail and a timeline of how this investment will translate into post offices being supported and kept open, additional services being provided as a matter of urgency, a fair and acceptable exit process for non-viable post offices, clarity and agreement on what a new postmasters' contract would look like, and an agreed and planned vision on the sizes of the Irish post office network. I repeat that this is 28 November 2017. These solutions were available on 28 November 2016 and nothing has happened. I thank the committee for the opportunity to address it.