Performance of Royal Mail

Warinder Juss Excerpts

Monday 26th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Edwards]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We can infer that there is definitely a baked-in position here, and that is a big problem, as we will hear from many Members. I hope that the importance of Ofcom being able to regulate better will be a crucial part of what we hear from the Minister.

As a member of the Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee, I took part in our inquiry into Royal Mail’s performance. We exposed a frustrating cycle of pass the parcel: the Government say that they will strengthen Ofcom’s powers if asked, and Ofcom says that changes are for the Government to make. Meanwhile, Ofcom has admitted that fines against a loss-making company are entirely ineffective in improving services, yet its proposed response to continued failures is more fines. Those statements seem rather at odds with each other. Our Committee has recommended that if Royal Mail fails to improve within six months, the Secretary of State should consult on changing Ofcom’s powers and duties. Five months on, meaningful improvement is yet to materialise.

[Warinder Juss (Wolverhampton West) (Lab)]

We have heard repeatedly that Royal Mail has failed for a number of years and that Ofcom has repeatedly fined Royal Mail to no effect. Does my hon. Friend agree that we should look not at how Royal Mail might go out of business, but perhaps at a new business model for Royal Mail to take over? That might just be the renationalisation of Royal Mail.