Wednesday 26 March 2008

Save our Post Offices

The threat to shut eight post offices in Barnet borough as part of the planned closure of 171 branches in the London region strikes a blow to the very heart of the Green Party's concept of sustainable communities.

The government should widen the range of official business which can be carried out through post offices, to make them more sustainable.

Post Office Ltd should sharply lower its estimate of what is a reasonable distance for people to walk to a post office, since its current unreasonable limit is being used to justify many of the closures.

Barnet Council should be looking at new ways of keeping its local Post Offices open, as Essex County Council and many other authorities are doing.

We ourselves should be writing to Post Office Ltd to oppose the closure of our local branches and to challenge its individual justifications for shutting each of them.

The eight local branches scheduled for closure are:

Dollis Valley Way, Barnet
Potters Road, Barnet
Cricklewood Lane, Cricklewood
Pennine Parade, Cricklewood
East End Road, East Finchley
High Road, North Finchley
Nether Street, West Finchley
Watford Way, Hendon

to send a protest e-mail direct to Post Office Ltd go to:
http://www.postoffice.co.uk/portal/po/content1?catId=57600693&mediaId=66300707

Other parties are jumping on the protest bandwagon but the Green Party has always campaigned for the provision of key services such as post offices, libraries and schools within easy walking distance of everyone's home.

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