Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Workers and Unemployed Action Group) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

recognises:— that the post office network is a unique social, cultural and financial institution that is essential to our local communities and the country as a whole;

— the vital contribution the post office network makes to the Irish economy;

— the fact that the post office network employs over 3,000 people throughout Ireland;

— that the post office network is the backbone of both rural and urban communities;

— that, as they stand, the Department of Social Protection’s plans for the electronic transfer of social welfare payments poses a serious threat to the future of the post office network;

— that without the income derived from the Department of Social Protection and the National Treasury Management Agency’s contracts, the post office network will be destabilised in terms of its viability; and

— that it will directly cause a reduction in cash payments at post offices which will ultimately lead to many closures and job losses throughout the country;acknowledges:— the specific commitment in the Programme for Government to ensure the sustainability of the post office network;

— the party wide acknowledgement of all elected representatives that the network provides a vital national strategic asset;

— that the key to the continued sustainability of the post office network is that An Post be equipped, through the provision of a full banking infrastructure operated by An Post, that will enable the network to facilitate the Department of Social Protection strategy to move to e-payments; and

— that the 18% of Irish people that are unbanked and the 23% that are not online rely solely on the post office network’s services; andcalls on the Government to:— produce a comprehensive action plan, setting out the measures to deliver on their strategy, and commit to complete the action plan within three months of the date of this motion;

— instruct each Government Department to implement, through the post office network, the business identified in the Grant Thornton and Joint Committee on Transport and Communications reports to underpin the sustainability of the post office network;

— commit that all tenders involving over the counter transactions will be decided on the basis of both social and economic policy;

— commit to implementing a new banking service that will be available through the post office network and operated by An Post;

— commit to a once-off capital investment fund for the further modernisation of the post office network to enable the widespread provision of banking facilities in rural and disadvantaged areas; and

— commit to reporting on the progress made on the implementation of the plan within six months of its publication.

Those last items are the most important part of this motion. They are concrete, practical actions to maintain the sustainability of the post office network. Unless those steps are taken, the Irish Postmasters' Union believes, as I do, that the network will suffer serious damage and a reduction in services. Such a reduction will have a knock-on effect on communities throughout the country.

The motion follows on from a commitment in the programme for Government 2011-16 which states that the Government will ensure that the network of post offices around the country is maintained and that communities have access to adequate postal services in their locality.

Compared to other retailers, the An Post network is extensive with 1,156 branches. Musgraves, for instance, has 895 branches, while there are 412 credit union offices. The Bank of Ireland has 255 branches, Allied Irish Bank 183, Ulster Bank 146, and there are 37 local authority offices. An Post's is therefore an extensive network which is available throughout the country both in urban and rural areas, including the smallest communities.

The An Post network serves not just rural areas, as may generally be thought, but is also available in many urban centres. In Dublin city the post office network comprises some 104 branches serving mainly disadvantaged communities throughout the capital. If the network is not maintained, sustained and supported quite a number of post offices will face closure, not only in rural areas but also in urban centres.

I want to welcome the postmasters who are present in the Public Gallery from around the country for this Private Members' debate, which will continue tomorrow evening.

One of the key problems facing the post office service is the possible loss of the social welfare contract in the short or medium term. The Grant Thornton follow-up report, which was commissioned by the Irish Postmasters' Union, indicated various scenarios. First, it stated that if there was no change, the social welfare contract was renewed and the Department's e-payment strategy did not go ahead, then the network would continue with few closures, if any.

The second scenario was where the social welfare contract would be lost completely. That would have a knock-on effect involving the closure of 557 of the 1,150 branches, which is a reduction of 48%.

The third scenario is where the social welfare contract is renewed but at a lower level of transaction due to the move to e-payments. That would reduce the network involving the closure of over 444 post office branches throughout the country, both in urban and rural areas.

My colleagues will cover many of the other areas involved, but I wish to refer briefly to the Government's amendment to the motion. In a statement earlier today, the Minister said that the Government has no plans to close post offices. The Government may not have such plans but the real question is whether the Government is prepared to allow post offices to wither away. Or is the Government prepared to take practical, concrete steps to ensure the continuation of the post office network throughout the country?

Unfortunately and disappointingly, an initial reading suggests that the Government's amendment contains no practical or concrete steps to ensure the retention of the post office service, as provided for in the programme for Government. I await the Minister's contribution on this matter.

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