Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am sharing time with Deputy Fitzpatrick. I do not know if he is here yet. I thank my colleagues for bringing this motion before the House. I also thank Ms. Cáit Nic Amhlaoibh in our office for all the work she has done in putting this motion together.

The local post office has long been the focal point of communities throughout Ireland. This is particularly true of rural areas but they have also played an important role in the social fabric of communities in many urban settings. The whole local post office network stands on the edge of a cliff. Unless action is taken to ensure its economic viability, more and more post offices outside the larger urban areas will shut for good.

It goes without saying that any difficulties or challenges faced by individual postmasters up to now have been gradually added to by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has reduced the volume of transactions by approximately 25%. Government needs to throw them an economic lifeline by offering them the chance to provide services such as motor tax renewal in their local areas. People should be able to renew driving licences, pay hospital charges and avail of a range of other services in their own localities.

The post offices need an injection of funds, as outlined by the recent report by Grant Thornton which recommended annual public service obligation funding of €17 million to support the post office network. That report outlined how funding models of this type are already in place to support the post office networks in the UK, France, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Finland and Poland. These have the approval of the European Commission, which shows there is no barrier to introducing such a levy here.

I remember I spoke in the Dáil on the issue of the threat to the future of post offices six years ago, back in 2014. I stressed then, as I do now, the very important and unique role they play socially, culturally and economically. In the interim, things have got worse instead of better for them. We had another report by Grant Thornton back then, which said: "Despite continued assertions by government officials as to the importance of the post office network, little support is being offered to them." At that time the big issue was the threatened loss of the contract to deliver welfare payments. That report also showed how the total number of post offices had shrunk from 1,361 in 2006 to 1,152 by 2012.

Grant Thornton's latest report outlines that the total number today is down to 944, of which 45 are company post offices run directly by An Post while 899 are run as franchises by postmasters. Grant Thornton warns that the network "faces significant levels of unrestrained closures by the end of 2021" unless action is taken.

I stress that there is an enormous return for the State in investing in local post offices and ensuring their survival. While it might be difficult to put a monetary figure on it, the social impact on communities would be very significant. The reverse is also true; further closures could have a devastating impact. There is a great grá among people for their local post office and there is great support for doing something to ensure they remain open and viable. Independent research earlier this year found that 91% of people said their post office provided a valuable service to the locality. Some 86% supported the Government providing financial support to keep their post office open and a further 86% wanted more State services to be available at their post office. Government would be pushing an open door if it were to act now. If it does not, it may find itself paying the price down the line.

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