Postal Services Bill

Edward Leigh Excerpts

Wednesday 27th October 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Binley]

It is absolutely bust! In fact, the previous Government recognised that and tried to enact a Bill, but they did not have the courage to carry it through. So we want no lessons from Labour Members. The Post Office is a bust flush. Its management needs rejuvenating, its work force are demoralised and its pension fund is in massive deficit. If that does not add up to a company that is totally off the rails, then I do not know what does. It would do the Opposition good to recognise that fact, rather than pontificating about a matter that they dared not deal with.

The Post Office faces a massive challenge. Volumes have declined enormously since 2005, and they are now down by 13 million units per day. Good God! If any other business faced that kind of decline, it would instantly recognise that it was bust; it would not need me to tell it. The Post Office is now 40% less efficient than its European competitors, and its modernisation programme is proceeding exceptionally slowly.

[Mr Edward Leigh (Gainsborough) (Con)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that if I had been allowed to privatise the Post Office when I was the Minister with responsibility for it 17 years ago, we would now have a world-beating international company earning huge riches for this country? That was a wasted opportunity, and we must never fail again. We should privatise it as soon as possible.