10-1-05

Fury as Post Office consultation proven a sham

The decision by Post Office management to close the branch at the South Gyle Shopping Centre has confirmed that the consultation process on post office closures in Edinburgh was ‘a complete sham’, according to Edinburgh West parliamentarians John Barrett MP and Margaret Smith MSP.
 
Post Office Ltd has announced its intention to press ahead with the closure of theSouth Gylepost office branch, despite overwhelming opposition. This was the only branch awaiting a final decision after the confirmation just before Christmas that Stenhouse Cross post office was also to close.
 
It means that of the 21 proposed post office closures put out for consultation inEdinburghlast summer, all 21 have or will close.
 
In a statement, Mr Barrett said:
 
“This announcement confirms what many of us have thought all a long. The public consultation put forward by Post Office management was nothing short of a complete sham.
 
“Not one proposed closure has been reversed following the public consultation process. Peoples’ views have been completely ignored and the decision to close all these branches was clearly taken a long time ago. For management, the concerns expressed by local people were irrelevant. Post Office Ltd now says that improvements will be made at other branches but what is being planned is piecemeal at best. 
 
“On the Gyle branch, Post Office management have added insult to injury by the way they have made this closure announcement. Just next week, Margaret Smith, Postwatch, myself and others were due to meet with management to try and find a way of saving the branch. However, this new announcement has effectively made that effort irrelevant. The way all of us have all been treated by Post Office Ltd has been disgusting.”
 
Margaret Smith MSP added:
 
“The effects of post office closures can already be seen. Thanks to the closure of the East Craigs post office last month, the queue at the nearest alternative branch atDuart Crescentis frequently out the door, forcing pensioners and the disabled to wait for their money in the wind and rain.
 
“These are exactly the problems which I, John Barrett and others predicted and just the kind of problems that Post Office management chose to ignore. The new problems from the closure of theSouth Gylebranch are likely to be even worse. After all, this is one of the busiest branches inEdinburghand is especially used by the disabled because of its disabled friendly access.”
 
ENDS