Crispin Blunt MP has welcomed the Government’s announcement of up to £370 million of new investment in the Post Office to ensure that the post office network is safeguarded and fit for the future.
Crispin Blunt commented:
“Post Office branches are at the heart of our local communities providing customers and small businesses a wide range of important services. I welcome the investment that the Government is making to keep post offices open, building on the £2 billion of investment since 2010.
“This extra funding will give the Post Office the security it needs to plan a successful long-term future for the network of branches as the business becomes more commercially sustainable with new technology, new products and a stronger online presence.
“This marks a profound change from previous years when we have had to campaign hard to try and save post offices across the constituency.”
Notes
The investment announced today will run from April 2018 to March 2021.
Over seven and a half thousand branches have been transformed and modernised since 2010 and figures published today reveal that branch numbers are the most stable they have been for decades. The network of post offices has been growing in size for the last two years to over 11,600 post offices across the country. The number of rural branches has also risen to 6,185. Today, 93% of people live within one mile of a post office and almost 99% of the rural population live within three miles.