Fourteen City Post Office selected for closure

10.13.23pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 19th Aug 2008

Royal Mail has proposed closing fourteen post offices in Edinburgh as part of the national Network Change Programme and the Lib Dems have come out fighting for the city's post office network.

Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West John Barrett said, "These closure proposals are bad news for Edinburgh. They are a direct result of the decision of the Labour Government to order the closure of 2500 post offices across Britain. Ministers claim that the post office network is not viable and yet it is the Government themselves who have put post offices in this difficult position. Instead of supporting Post Offices they have continued to strip away business from them and what is more they are now exploiting these problems to justify the closures."

The post offices proposed for closure include Cramond, Dalmeny, Gorgie Road, Shandon Place, Warrendar Park, Elm Row, Goldenacre, Pilrig Toll, Longstone, Magdelane Drive, Nicholson Street, Elm Row, Broomhall and Calder Crossway

Over the next six week Liberal Democrat Councillors and campaigners will be working hard to make sure that as many people as possible across the city know how to object to the Royal Mail's Plans.

On 19 March opposition MPs tried to stop the closure programme when a motion was proposed in the House of Commons demanding the Government halt their plans to make 2,500 branches across Britain shut up shop. But enough Labour MPs rallied around the Government's closure plans to reject the motion and ensure the closure programme can continue unhindered. All four Labour MPs from Edinburgh voted to reject the call for review and to support the plans. Lib Dem John Barrett was the only Edinburgh MP to support the call to review the closure programme.

Related Link:

Full details of the Royal Mail Closure Plans for Edinburgh.