Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to ensure more (a) reliable and (b) timely delivery of first-class mail in rural areas.

The government is committed to a sustainable universal service for users throughout the UK, including those in remote and rural areas.

It is for Ofcom, as the independent regulator of postal services, to set and monitor Royal Mail’s service standards and to decide how to use its powers to investigate and take enforcement action should Royal Mail fail to achieve its obligations without good justification.