Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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88. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the interactions her Department has had with representatives from the Irish Postmasters Union; and its plans to continue to engage with the union regarding the potential enhanced use of the post office network; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29982/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Over the past two years, both I and Minister Humphreys have met with representatives of the Irish Postmasters Union. Most recently, Minister Humphreys met with IPU General Secretary in April of this year. In addition, officials from my department would have had a number of contacts with the IPU over this period.

My colleague the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Mr Alex White TD, established the Post Office Network Business Development Group under the independent chairmanship of Mr Bobby Kerr in February 2015 to explore potential commercial opportunities available to the post office network. The group has issued its interim report and is seeking submissions on its initial proposals.

As I have previously stated, this Government has consistently stated its commitment to maintaining the Post Office Network as set out in the Programme for Government. The post office is seen as a key piece of financial and social infrastructure for both rural and urban areas. It is Government policy that An post remains a strong and viable company in a position to provide a high quality postal service and maintain a nationwide customer focussed network of post offices in the community.

My department’s continuing support for An Post is apparent, both in terms of the cost of postage services and the value of the contract for welfare payments. In this regard, we anticipate that this year we will pay over €50 million to An Post under a contract for cash payment services for welfare customers. This contract is very substantial in terms of its reach, value and impact.