Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to outline the position on this matter on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers. They are both very aware of the impact that decisions relating to changes in An Post operations have on communities and individuals in both rural and urban areas.

An Post is a commercial State company with a mandate to act commercially and, as such, day-to-day operational matters, including decisions as regards the size, distribution and future of the network, are matters for the board and the management of the company and not ones in which either the Minister or the Minister of State has any statutory function. The Minister has responsibility for the postal sector, including the governance oversight of An Post, to ensure that the company is compliant with the code of practice for the governance of State bodies and the governance functions included in the statutory framework that underpins An Post.

In line with its ongoing transformation, An Post has announced that it is converting six post offices from An Post-operated to contractor-operated, one of which is the Rathmines office. That post office will join the mainstream of national post offices in that more than 90% of the country's 900 post offices are operated by contractors. It should be noted that fewer than 40 post offices throughout the State are now run directly by An Post.

In accordance with section 8.22 of the code of practice, all State bodies are required to seek the approval of the relevant Minister and the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform in advance of any material acquisition or disposal of land, buildings or other material assets proposed by a State body. An Post is aware of the requirement for compliance with the code of practice. An Post has indicated that the change in business model of the six offices will not in any way alter the range or extent of the services offered by An Post in those locations.

In recent years, An Post has been transforming its business by delivering new products and new formats in the way it operates. This includes, among other things, diversifying and growing the financial services products it provides for individuals and small and medium-sized enterprises to include loans, credit cards, more foreign exchange products, local banking in association with the major banks, and a full range of State savings products. An Post is providing agency banking services for AIB and Bank of Ireland across its network of post offices.

The Government's objectives for the An Post network include harnessing the opportunities presented by e-commerce and the digital economy and delivering a sustainable nationwide post office network offering a range of e-commerce, financial and government services. The Government agreed that €10 million per annum will be provided by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications over a three-year fixed term, 2023 to 2025, to support the postmasters, with funding to be dispersed across the post office network. The funding is being paid monthly for each 12-month period. Over €12.2 million has been claimed by An Post to the end of March 2024 for the postmaster network. The programme for Government recognises that a modernised post office network will provide a better range of financial services and e-commerce services for citizens and enterprise, as part of our commitment to a sustainable nationwide post office network. The overall €30 million funding being provided to support a sustainable nationwide post office network is in line with this commitment.

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