Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether he has had discussions with Ofcom on stronger mechanisms for holding Royal Mail accountable for improving the reliability of letter deliveries.

It is for Ofcom to set and monitor Royal Mail’s service standards, and to decide how to use its powers to investigate and take enforcement action. While the government does not have a role in Ofcom’s regulatory decisions, in January I met with representatives from Ofcom who gave their reassurance that Ofcom is closely monitoring Royal Mail’s performance and its action plan to drive improvement in quality of service.

In December 2024, following its investigation of Royal Mail’s performance in the 2023-24 financial year, Ofcom fined the company £10.5m because of its failure to significantly improve service levels. The government expects that Ofcom will continue to closely monitor Royal Mail’s performance and take action where appropriate.