§ Norman BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry for what reasons elements of management within the Post Office are given a financial incentive to close post offices; and what percentage of post offices within their individual remits they need to close to qualify. [139210]
§ Mr. TimmsI understand from Post Office Ltd that their Network Development Managers working on the urban reinvention programme are paid in the same way as all other managers in Post Office Ltd. Their pay arrangements include provision for a bonus based on a combination of overall business, financial and quality results and achievement of personal objectives. Their personal objectives are structures around identifying and preparing robust network reinvention proposals for presentation to Postwatch to achieve sustainable restructuring of services in local areas, and are linked to the success in migrating customers from any branch which closes as a result to other branches in the network. There is no incentive linked to actual branch closure.