Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

This debate is very important, and I compliment my colleague, Deputy Durkan, on giving us an opportunity to discuss An Post. I am very glad to see the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Noel Dempsey, in the House.

I am told that I am a happy Deputy, but something that pleases me every single day is that at home, in my constituency office, and in the Houses of the Oireachtas, I open my mail, which always excites me. There is a great deal of correspondence from my constituents and greetings from various people. I also network with politicians abroad. It is important that, like the Minister, we understand the worth of the postal service. We receive a great deal of correspondence. I do not get at all excited about opening an e-mail or looking at a fax, but since I was a child, I have been happy to see post dropping through the letter box.

It is important that, like others who have spoken on this motion, we strongly support the men and women of the postal service. I have great respect for the postal workers in the Tallaght area, particularly those in the Tallaght sorting office. I am sure other Members will say the same about the service provided in their areas. The Minister, Deputy Noel Dempsey, is aware of my concerns regarding postal services because I have often articulated them to him. There have been post office closures even in my constituency, which comprises a major urban centre. I was consistently critical of the poor decision to close the post office in Tallaght village, which provided a tremendous service and a focal point for the people of Tallaght and surrounding districts. I am keen to promote Tallaght village, which is where my full-time office is located and where I spend a large part of every day.

A huge catchment area in the Greenhills-Greenpark part of my constituency, for instance, is without a post office since McHugh's shopping centre on St. James's Road was badly damaged by fire and left derelict. My constituents in this area, some of whom may wish to write to me and with whom I may wish to correspond, are obliged to go to post offices in other locations, such as Walkinstown. An Post should listen carefully to our concerns regarding Greenhills, Greenpark and other places where the need for a local post office is great.

I take the point which Deputy Moynihan-Cronin articulated yesterday that there are even more and different challenges in rural areas. It is interesting that all the other Fianna Fáil Members who have spoken on this motion are from rural constituencies. Their concerns may differ slightly from mine. It is important to emphasise that residents in major urban areas like to have postal services close by. I have pointed to some of the difficulties in my constituency but it is also important to point out that there are post offices in Springfield, Killinarden, Aylesbury, Glenview, Kilnamanagh and Templeogue village. Some people expressed their disappointed when the post office in Templeogue village was moved across the street into the Centra centre. People become accustomed to availing of postal services in a particular environment.

I am glad the Minister is in the House to hear Members' concerns. I hope he will take account of the points made in this debate. Members are entitled to put forward their political views, even at Christmas. I have no hesitation in strongly supporting the postal service, particularly in my constituency. I am a regular visitor to the sorting office in Tallaght where the staff do a great job. Members have received regular correspondence from the Irish Postmasters Union and I understand the Minister is carefully considering their representations. I have assured the general secretary, Mr. John Kane, that I and my colleagues will continue to bring the union's concerns to the Minister's attention.

I always say that I come from a bygone Dublin era. I have never spent much time in rural areas and am comfortable being a Dublin person. We have seen changes to various semi-State institutions over the years, including Bord na Móna, the Irish Sugar Company, Aer Lingus, CIE and An Post. The latter is an institution whose activities impact all our lives on a daily basis. In light of the changes in society in recent years, including the demise or transformation of so many of these seemingly fixed and permanent institutions, it seems possible that An Post too may become a thing of the past. This should not happen.

The postal service is one in which the public has absolute confidence, and that confidence has never been misplaced. When one puts a stamp on a letter and puts it into a post box, one expects no other conclusion than that the letter will arrive at the location to which it is addressed. That trust has been earned through nine decades of service to the public by the postal service. I see postal workers in Tallaght serving the public in all weathers. Every Member can say the same of their own areas.

We can all be confident that the stamp we put on our letter represents a contract that will not be broken. It is the human element of the postal service that has inspired this confidence and respect. An Post provides a considerable range of automated services and further developments are likely in this regard. However, no technology, no matter how useful, can replace the men and women who walk the cities, towns, villages and farmlands of Ireland. It is by their efforts that the public's trust has been earned.

The postal service has continued in an unbroken line from the first day of the establishment of the State in 1922. It is one of the success stories of Irish independence. I urge all Deputies to be mindful of these facts when the move to open the service to private competition is considered. The private operators who move into the area of postal delivery will cherry-pick those areas of service that generate the most profit. That is the nature of business. An Post, however, is not merely a business. It is also a service and its workers are imbued with a sense of service which is not normally a feature of the private operator.

Change is part of natural development, but there are some tried and tested institutions and services we should not lightly change. An Post should not go the way of some of those seemingly permanent institutions to which I referred, not for sentimental reasons but for the sound reason that it has proven to be one of the most effective postal services in Europe. A colleague observed last night that we are entering an important new era for postal services. I noticed an advertisement recently which claimed that Christmas begins when one receives a card. For some strange reason, I received my first Christmas card in October.

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