Proposed by Councillor Cherry Povall

Seconded by Councillor Paul Hayes

(1)  Council notes that four out of every ten Post Offices that existed in 1997 had closed by 2010.

(2)  Council believes the remaining Post Office network in Wirral offers a valuable lifeline to many people, not least those who do not, or cannot, have a bank account and those who do not have access to online banking.

(3)  Council therefore welcomes:

(a)  The commitment by the Coalition Government to ensure that Post Offices remain in the public sector and are allowed to offer a wide range of services in order to sustain the network.

(b)  The decision to give Post Office Card account holders the chance to benefit from direct debit discounts and ensure that social tariffs offer access to the best prices available.

(c)  Discussions between the Council and the Post Office to enable Local Housing Allowance claimants to use Post Office ‘Payout’.

Amendment submitted in accordance with Standing Order 7(2).

Proposed by Councillor Brian Kenny

Seconded by Councillor Adrian Jones

Delete all after paragraph (2) and insert:

(3)  Council expresses its concern, however, that the Government rejected calls for a PostBank to support access to fair banking.

(4)  Council notes that the Liberal Democrats’ 2010 Manifesto pledged to: "Improve access to banking for all with a PostBank, revenues from which will also help to secure the future of the Post Office" and "End the post office closure programme to keep post offices open in rural areas where they're the lynchpin of community life, improve access to banking and help secure the future of the Post Office through a PostBank."

(5)  Council also notes that the Liberal Democrat Minister for Postal Affairs, Ed Davey, broke his party’s manifesto pledge when he rejected the proposal for a PostBank in his statement on the future of the Post Offices on November 9th.

(6)  Council accepts that establishing a PostBank at the Post Office would help improve access to banking and secure the future of the Post Office network and recognises that the campaign for a PostBank is supported by the Federation of Small Businesses, the National Federation of Subpostmasters, the Countryside Alliance, the National Pensioners Convention, and the New Economics Foundation.

(7)  Council believes that the Coalition Government’s plans to privatise Royal Mail and break the historic link with the Post Office puts the future of the Post Office network in jeopardy, particularly in view of the fact that no other country in the world has separated its Post Office network from its mail business.

(8)  Council does not accept that the Postal Services Bill will prevent further Post Office closures. Ministers say there will be ‘no closure programme’ but meanwhile over 150 post offices have closed recently and 900 are currently up for sale.

(9)  Council further expresses concern that Ministers have rejected calls for the Bill to:

(a)  Guarantee the size of the Post Office network

(b)  Guarantee the Inter-Business Agreement between Royal Mail and the Post Office

(c)  Guarantee access criteria to ensure every community is near to a post office

The amendment was put and lost (22:41)

The motion was put and carried (41:22)

Resolved (41:22) –

(1)  Council notes that four out of every ten Post Offices that existed in 1997 had closed by 2010.

(2)  Council believes the remaining Post Office network in Wirral offers a valuable lifeline to many people, not least those who do not, or cannot, have a bank account and those who do not have access to online banking.

(3)  Council therefore welcomes:

(a)  The commitment by the Coalition Government to ensure that Post Offices remain in the public sector and are allowed to offer a wide range of services in order to sustain the network.

(b)  The decision to give Post Office Card account holders the chance to benefit from direct debit discounts and ensure that social tariffs offer access to the best prices available.

(c)  Discussions between the Council and the Post Office to enable Local Housing Allowance claimants to use Post Office ‘Payout’.