Michelle Mulherin (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am seeking an update on the progress made by the post office development group established by the Government to identify and implement new business opportunities for the post office network. It is timely for us to have an update on this. The issue of post office closures, particularly in rural areas, is an old chestnut. What is envisaged as the way forward by the development group is for post offices to be put on a sustainable footing. We know there has been a change in the number of people using the postal system, so post offices have had to diversify. Equally, we know that in rural areas there is a deficit in services like banking and so on, so it would seem that post offices could be in a position, if properly supported, to step into that breach and provide vital services to rural communities. There is also the issue of social welfare payments into banks. If the post offices had a range of services to receive money in that fashion, it could address the issue of such payments having to be made to banks.

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