‘Urgent action’ needed for island postal services, Goodlad says in letter to UK Government
SHETLAND MSP Hannah Mary Goodlad has written to the UK Government calling for “urgent action” to improve postal services for the Scottish islands.
Writing in her role as public finance minister, she called for a meeting involving Royal Mail, Post Office Ltd, regulator Ofcom, parcel delivery companies and consumer and community organisations.
It comes after a report from Consumer Scotland this summer highlighted how Shetland residents are having to deal with a “fragmented, unreliable and often expensive” postal service.
It advised the UK Government, regulator Ofcom, parcel operators and retailers to improve services and limit surcharges for island communities.
Prior to the report’s publication, Consumer Scotland ran a number of workshops in island communities to find out more about people’s experiences.
While local postal workers were widely praised, the speed of post getting to Shetland was one area that came under criticism.
Goodlad wrote to the UK Government’s secretary of state for business, innovation, science and trade Jonathan Reynolds in late August, while Scottish secretary Douglas Alexander was also copied in.
The letter, which has only now been published on the Scottish Government website, highlighted how Goodlad – in her role as public finance minister – has consumer advocacy and advice in her portfolio.
Noting the Consumer Scotland report, Goodlad said the issues highlighted “have significant social and economic consequences that undermine the resilience of Scotland’s island communities”.
She also referred to the long-standing issue of couriers applying high surcharges for packages headed to the islands, or refusing to send them at all – while the MSP also noted the already high living costs in island communities.
“The Scottish Government has long sought, within its limited devolved powers, to instigate change and ensure that every part of Scotland has access to fair and equitable postal and parcel delivery services,” Goodlad wrote.
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“Among other initiatives, we published an action plan and convened roundtables with delivery companies. However, the fact remains that only the UK Government has the powers to mandate the much-needed improvements.
“As you may be aware, while serving as minister for small business and economic transformation, Blair McDougall acknowledged that postal services had not met the expectations of customers in the islands ‘for quite some time’.
“I hope you will therefore agree with me that urgent action is therefore required and doing nothing is not an option.”
Goodlad said she hoped a meeting of interested parties such as Royal Mail, Ofcom and parcel delivery companies could help to make “urgent and necessary progress on postal services and parcel delivery regulation”.
“In advance of any roundtable, I think it important that we meet to discuss these challenges. While powers rest with UK Government, I want to underline the great importance that I place on advocating for consumers in Scotland,” she wrote.
“This means that I am very keen to work constructively with you to identify sustainable solutions that genuinely address the needs of our rural and island communities.”
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