Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

The programme for Government includes multiple commitments to sustaining rural life and to strengthening communities and yet, in the past week or so, postmasters have pointed out that An Post's network and many of our local post offices are on the brink of collapse because of a lack of Government support. In my area, two post offices are under threat as a result of the outsourcing model which means that the system depends on people being willing to take up the role of postmaster. There is no commitment to maintain the only publicly owned network to reach into every community, rural and urban. There is no commitment to sustain that network and to run Government business of all sorts through it in order to protect jobs, communities and the vital communication network provided to all communities in which An Post is represented. What does the Taoiseach say to the concerns raised by the postmasters?

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