§ 57. Mr. Huntasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications whether, in the light of the delays in the Christmas mail, he will now dismiss the Chairman of the Post Office.
§ Sir J. EdenNo, Sir. I am satisfied, on the basis of the chairman's public statement and the full report he has made to me, that all appropriate action has been taken to establish the cause of these delays and ensure that they do not occur again.
§ 58. Mr. Kinnockasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications what was the number of letters posted by 21st December which did not reach their destination by 24th December 1972; and how this compares with previous years.
§ Sir J. EdenI understand from the Post Office that it does not have this information.
§ Mr. Roderickasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications what was the total number of permanent staff employed by the Post Office on sorting and distributing mail in the Christmas period in the years 1970, 1971, 1972, respectively; and what was the total number of hours overtime worked by the same staff in the same periods.
§ Sir J. EdenThe Post Office tells me that over the periods in question the 169W approximate numbers of such staff employed were:
1970 … … … 128,000 1971 … … … 126,000 1972 … … … 125,500 The number of hours overtime worked by certain staff is a management matter for the Post Office.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications (1) how many temporary staff were recruited by the Post Office to deal with the Christmas mail in 1972 compared with 1971;
(2) what was the increased cost, in real terms, of recruiting temporary staff to deal with the Christmas mail in 1972 compared with 1971.
§ Mr. Kinnockasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications what was the number of temporary postmen employed by the Post Office for the Christmas period 1972; and how this compares with previous years.
§ Sir J. EdenThe Post Office tells me that it employed about 96,000 temporary staff in 1972 compared with 110,000 in 1971 and 134,000 in 1970.
The costs of Christmas working in 1972 have not yet been finally calculated. In any case detail of this kind is a management matter for the Post Office.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications when was the last occasion on which delivery of the Christmas mail ceased on 23rd December.
§ Sir J. EdenThe Post Office tells me that 1972 was the first year since the turn of the century in which mail deliveries ceased on 23rd December.