Pat Gallagher (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The first issue, tabled by Deputies Niamh Smyth and Mattie McGrath, is for the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, who is still with us.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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Deputy Smyth is picking on me all day.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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It is the Minister's lucky day, and again we are talking about services that affect rural areas. I, along with many postmasters and postmistresses across the country, was horrified to see the headline in theIrish Independent some days or weeks ago. It stated 400 post offices are to close. As the Minister well knows, the post offices provide an invaluable piece of the fabric and integrity of rural areas. We cannot stand by any longer and see no changes and movement towards making progress on post offices and bringing them into the 21st century such that they will have the technology and services to make them sustainable and worth having in communities.

As the Minister knows, the post offices have to be sustainable. They are businesses. We need to offer a broader range of services within them. We need to consider the financial pressure that the postmasters and postmistresses find themselves under. It requires some fresh thinking and the implementation of new ways of doing things.

There has to be an emphasis on the Kerr report. It was launched almost a year ago, with some practical solutions as to how we can proceed. We will all be the first to admit the figures do not lie. The post offices have suffered significant losses, of between €12 million and €15 million in 2016, and a much greater loss is anticipated for 2017. Postage currently represents 64% of An Post's revenue, down from 74% in 2016. These are facts we cannot get away from. It is largely attributable to the fall in mailing and also to better use of technology. We have talked about broadband so we realise better use of technology is not always a feature in certain areas. There are rural areas in our constituencies that do not have broadband and probably depend on An Post a lot more than areas that do. One facilitates the other.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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I am glad the Minister is here to hear this. We in the Rural Independent Group brought in a Bill here last September. It was agreed by the Government. My secretary spent time negotiating with the Minister's office, for which I thank him, and the Taoiseach's office and the Department of the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Michael Ring - God help us - to agree on wording for it. We agreed on a Bill that committed to doing something about the post offices. We had the Kerr report, and report upon report. It is blatantly obvious that diminishing the business is diminishing the incomes of the postmistresses. That is what is going to happen. Reviews a year or two after a diminishment show diminished income, and the advice is to close the post office. It is closure by stealth.

We have had the Kerr report. I am depending on the Minister, Deputy Naughten. The Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Michael Ring, did a complete Pontius Pilate exercise; he washed has hands of it. He does not care about post offices. He talked about a hurdy-gurdy or some kind of mobile post office and then ran away from it. It was left to a different Department, that of the Minister before us, Deputy Denis Naughten. It is in the hands of the latter. I acknowledge from the negotiations on the formation of the Government that this is a very high priority for the Minister. We expect him to deliver. We expect that the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, and the other independent Ministers will insist that the Government cry halt because all the reports, activities and talk are useless.

What does the unanimous acceptance of our Bill in this House mean? Does it mean anything to the postmistresses, their staff and families? I met many of them on Sunday night in Cork on the way home from the meeting in Athlone. They are depressed because the Government is tying their hands behind their backs, blindfolding them and taking away the business. What will offering to give the post offices bank accounts do? It will take further business from them. They should be given responsibility for dealing with car tax or such business. The Government should consider the banking system in Iceland and bring in the credit unions also, if necessary, but it should not be all talk and do nothing for the post offices. It is in the hands of the Minister. I hope he does not wash his hands of the matter; I know he will not. It is bad enough for the Minister for Rural and Community Development, Deputy Michael Ring, to do that. The people deserve better. The post offices are the hubs of the community. They are the tourist offices and they are the facilitators. If anything goes wrong and it is noted that somebody is missing of a Friday, owing to sudden illness, for example, his or her life may be saved in many cases. The Government should have some respect for the post offices at this stage. They are being kicked around like a political football for the past ten years. It is time for action.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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I have a lot of respect for postmasters and postmistresses across the country. I should declare an interest, namely, that my aunt in Galway who is also my godmother is the postmistress in Killimor. It is something in which I have a significant interest. I was one of five Members who bothered to make a submission on the Kerr report because I felt so strongly about the issue. Many services can be channelled through the post office network. The payment of motor tax is one very small example.

It is Government policy that An Post will remain a strong and viable company in a position to provide high quality nationwide postal services and maintain a nationwide customer-focused network of post offices in the community. However, the An Post Group lost €13.7 million in 2016, with the core mail business losing over €30 million.

As we know, the post office network comprises just over 1,100 outlets nationwide and reaches over 1.7 million customers. It is the Government's front-office provider of choice for many citizens and seen as a trusted, local, reliable and friendly service.

The four major strengths of An Post are its strong brand; the fact that the organisation is trusted by the public, in particular by older people; it is a nationwide network and that it guarantees delivery and collections five days a week, 52 weeks of the year. These strengths have been built on over the years by the postmasters and postmistresses, in conjunction with An Post. With its nationwide reach, the company brings vans and postal workers to every premises in Ireland five days a week, 52 weeks of the year. It is a valuable service, particularly in rural areas for rurally based businesses. To protect the network, I repealed the cap on the price of a stamp because, despite advice to the contrary, I believe the five-day a week service is an asset to be developed, not undermined. The Government is fully committed to having a sustainable post office network which it sees as a key piece of financial and social infrastructure for urban and rural areas. Part of the strength of the post office brand and one of its selling points is that it reaches all parts of the country and can be accessed by anyone. I expect this to be a cornerstone of any future strategy for the company and the post office network.

An Post has entered a period of structural change and decline in activity, mainly due to the impact of e-substitutions on mail volumes and post office transactions. The environment in which An Post operates is changing and the network needs to change in order to thrive, in particular given the move to digital transactions. This involves harnessing existing strengths such as the trusted brand and the relationship of postmasters and postmistresses with individual communities to build the network of the future. There will be opportunities to develop new or enhanced product lines for the network and I am keen to ensure this will include the concept of digital assist, whereby the post office would become a default option in the provision of Government services for those who are not comfortable in the digital space. The post office plays an important role in serving the needs of businesses and domestic customers alike and this is the forefront of the mandate of An Post. I am acutely conscious of the value placed by communities in rural and urban areas on services provided by post offices and determined to ensure the needs of those committees will be met. The Government remains fully committed to having a sustainable post office network which it sees as a key piece of economic and social infrastructure for rural and urban areas.

In response to the challenges it faces a strategic review of An Post, including the post office network, which will identify the changes and restructuring required to maintain the company on a sound financial footing was initiated and is nearing completion. All opportunities are being assessed by An Post in the context of the review. Until such time as it is finalised and assessed, it is not possible to comment further. The Government will be briefed once a definitive strategy has been agreed.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to make some simple suggestions. An Post services could be extended to allow post offices to act as a central office for State payments and charges. They could deal with the processing of motor tax, local authority and hospital charges and provide banking services. We could ensure the post office would become a hub for shared community State services, as well as an office providing access to broadband and printing facilities. The Department of Social Protection contract could be extended.

It has been many months since the formation of the Government, yet there has been little movement on outlining a plan to safeguard the future of the An Post network. The Government's responsibility for post offices and future network renewal resides with two Departments and three Ministers. The Government received the Bobby Kerr report which outlined a number of practical solutions to address the problems in An Post, but almost one year on, there has been no action. Post offices are an important strategic State asset and play an invaluable role as the centre point of community and commercial activity in urban and rural Ireland. They comprise the largest retail network in the country, with over 1,100 post offices employing almost 3,000 people. The Minister does not need me to emphasise further the importance of the integrity of the network for rural Ireland.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent)
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I must declare that my sister runs a post office. Her staff member, Helen, had a stroke and I wish her well in her recovery. I hope the Minister's aunt is not watching the debate or she will have a stroke. It is a good job that he has made his First Holy Communion and Confirmation because he would receive no envelope. She would instead give him a red card. It is up to the Independent Members in government to deal with this issue because it is clear that Fine Gael will not deal with it. The Minister, Deputy Michael Ring, washed his hands of it and is not interested. I have been a Member of the House since the time of former Deputy Mary O'Rourke when lip service was paid to the post office network.

Deputy Niamh Smyth outlined all of the good things about the post office network. Post offices in Kilmeaden, County Waterford and Terryglass closed recently. They might be given a reprieve. Post offices are being closed every day and disappearing before our eyes like snow off a dish when the sun comes out. It is time for the Minister to act. We have had enough reports and strategic reviews. How many staff are working in the GPO? Postmasters and postmistresses are not causing losses in An Post; rather, it is over-staffing in places such as the main post office. When An Post was struggling, the price of a stamp was increased by 30 cent. If any other person was to do that, he or she would go out of business within a short time. It is the sabotage of a wonderful institution and wonderful people.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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To answer Deputy Niamh Smyth's question, I am the Minister in charge. There may be technical issues, but the buck stops with me. An Post is accountable to me as Minister and I am accountable to the House for An Post.

I disagree with Deputy Mattie McGrath. It is not a question of sabotage. In my contribution I outlined why I had to increase the price of a stamp. I will not do what my predecessors did, namely, bury my head in the ground in the hope the problem will go away. Last year I was left with a situation, which I outlined for the House on numerous occasions, where I either had to reduce postal services in rural areas to a three-day week service or increase the price of a stamp. If I had done what the Deputy had wanted me to do and not increased the price of a stamp, he would have been the very first to criticise the impact it had had on rural Ireland and businesses. I categorically refute the suggestion and would not tolerate such a situation.

Deputy Niamh Smyth made some very cogent points. When I was on her side of the House, I made the exact same points. I encourage her to talk to my Cabinet colleagues and make the same points to them because she is correct. Myriad Government services could be delivered through post offices. The websites and technology are available. Every single post office in Ireland, with the exception of 34, will have high speed broadband outside the door. That should not be a threat; rather, it should be an asset to be exploited.

The Deputy is also correct in respect of collecting health charges and so forth. An Post needs to provide financial services. The banks have pulled out of provincial towns and rural Ireland. An Post can not only meet that challenge head on but also provide new and innovative financial services.

My final point is relevant to all of us in the House. The only time any of us go into a post office is to buy stamps at Christmas time or during the summer in order to renew passports to go on holidays or buy foreign currency. We need to change the business model of An Post and to get more people, rather than just older people, to use the post office network. We have to hold on to the social welfare service and expand others.