Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy will appreciate that the Minister cannot intervene in matters which the Oireachtas has given An Post a statutory responsibility to fulfil. An Post has an independent board that has a clear mandate. I accept that the Deputy is not happy that the post office is being converted. However, I am thankful that it is not proposed that the post office be closed.

I encourage everyone to use the post office. I say that every time I have an opportunity to speak on this issue. It is not only in rural areas, it is also in urban areas. Post offices depend on over-the-counter transactions. Given the increase in the number of online transactions, however, it is very important that people continue to support post offices. The Deputy said the Tallaght post office is extremely busy, but that is not always the case. I ask people to continue to support post offices.

I will bring the Deputy’s concerns back to the Minister and his officials in person. The Deputy referred to a petition with over 2,000 signatories, the majority of whom are older people who are used to the post office as it currently operates.

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