The Humble Petition of residents of Bozeat, Northamptonshire and the surrounding areas,
Sheweth,
That the Petitioners believe that the Bozeat branch of the Post Office should extend its opening hours to 9am until 5pm six days a week; and further that to accommodate greater usage of the facility and to prevent congestion at other facilities used elsewhere by the villagers.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your Honourable House urges the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to encourage the Post Office to extend the opening hours of their Bozeat village branch.
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray, &c.—[Presented by Mr Peter Bone , Official Report, 8 November 2016; Vol. 616, c. 1488.]
[P001976]
Observations from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Margot James):
The Government recognise the value of Post Office services to local communities across the country and understand that any change to service provision can cause concern for the community affected.
The Post Office operates as an independent business and the Government do not interfere in day to day operational responsibilities of the company, which includes decisions on the provision and location of individual Post Office services.
The Post Office appreciates how important its services are to local communities and is committed to maintaining access to services wherever possible. Unplanned closures can occur as a result of a situation beyond the control of the Post Office. Where this happens, the Post Office works quickly to try to restore services to the community, where possible.
The Government understand that the Post Office undertook a local consultation in the community prior to the reintroduction of services via the current partner outreach arrangement operating from the local village shop. If the community has further concerns regarding the provision of local Post Office services it should raise these direct with the Post Office.