HC Deb 28 November 2000 vol 357 cc531-2W
Mr. Luff

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, pursuant to his answer of 1 November 2000,Official Report, column 462W, what action he is taking to prevent the closure of directly managed post offices and their transfer to agency status until new consultation procedures are in place. [138771]

Mr. Alan Johnson

In the light of the White Paper "Post Office Reform: A World Class Service for the 21st Century" and a subsequent recommendation by the Performance and Innovation Unit, discussions are taking place between the Post Office and the Post Office Users' National Council on a revised code of practice and consultation procedures relating to the closure or relocation of post offices. The Government's moratorium on conversions of directly managed post offices to agency status was lifted in December 1998 following agreement of a Post Office strategy whereby at least 15 per cent. of the total business transacted by the counters' network is done at remaining Crown offices.

Mr. Burden

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what progress has been made in the establishment of the fund to improve the quality of post offices in deprived urban areas by installing security measures and modernising premises; [139105]

(2) what the mechanism is for allocating funds being made available to install security measures and to modernise post offices in deprived urban areas. [139106]

Mr. Alan Johnson

[holding answer 21 November 2000]: Ring-fenced funding has been allocated from 2001–02 to help sustain and improve post offices in deprived urban areas. Discussions on the criteria and mechanisms for allocating funding are taking place between my Department, the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions and the Post Office.

Mr. Lilley

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if the Post Office proposal for a formula for calculating a social network payment for sub-post offices is commercially confidential. [140261]

Mr. Byers

[holding answer 24 November 2000]: Proposals on the future of the Post Office Counters network have been submitted to me by the Post Office "In Strictest Confidence". The Post Office plan is commercially confidential.