Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, whether he will make representations to Royal Mail on the suspension of postal deliveries to residents in Upware during the recent road closure; and what assessment he has made of the impact of the decision not to deliver mail on residents and businesses in Upware.

As Royal Mail is an independent business, the government is not involved in its operational decisions nor in resolving complaints about local service issues.

Ofcom, as the independent regulator for postal services, has established circumstances in which exceptions to Royal Mail's universal service delivery obligations may apply, including where there are difficulties of access. Decisions concerning individual delivery exceptions are operational matters for Royal Mail, subject to Ofcom's regulatory framework.

The government expects that disruptions to local postal services are avoided where possible.