LEAKED LETTER REVEALS LIBDEM DUPLICITY ON ROYAL MAIL

For Immediate Use: Wednesday 22 September 2010


Attn: NEWSDESKS
POLITICAL CORRESPONDENTS


CABLE PLAN TO SCRAP SATURDAY DELIVERIES


TAVISH’S “COPPER BOTTOMED GUARANTEE” EXPOSED AS ROCK BOTTOM BETRAYAL


The SNP have rounded on the LibDems after a leaked letter revealed a
secret UK Government plan to scrap Saturday postal deliveries, just
days after Scottish LibDem leader Tavish Scott claimed to have
received a “copper bottomed guarantee” on the future of services.


In a letter sent by Vince Cable to Chancellor George Osborne, obtained
by the Press and Journal, the Business Secretary raises the prospect
of a reduction in minimum service requirements, and that legislation
he plans to introduce would “build in flexibility to amend” these
minimum requirements in future.


Commenting, Mr Weir said:


“Vince Cable’s letter lays bare the utter duplicity of the LibDems
over postal services. Just days after Tavish Scott claimed he had
received a copper bottomed guarantee that there would be no change we
find out from the small print that the bill will include provisions to
change it.


“Tavish Scott must now answer the question, is he so out of the loop
that he wasn’t told or did he know and seek to cloud the issue?


“It is now clear that the LibDems are prepared to countenance a change
in the minimum requirements, which will be inevitable given the
commercial pressures that would follow privatisation. This is a total
abandonment of any principles on the matter.


“The statement that the service would remain the same throughout the
country is simply a red herring. The difference is that a business in
Kensington would have access to several different postal operators,
whilst a business in Kyleakin do not have that choice.


“The plain truth of the matter is that businesses in rural Scotland
rely upon the services provided by Royal Mail. Any reduction in the
current minimum requirements of the Universal Service Obligation will
seriously impact on rural areas and will undermine efforts to
regenerate the rural economy.


“LibDems voters throughout rural Scotland will be incensed at this
further betrayal.”


“It turns out the LibDems copper bottomed guarantee was a rock bottom
betrayal of our rural communities.


“We have already seen our Post Office network cut by the last Labour
government, and now the LibDems are opening the door to service cuts
as well. People in rural areas will feel especially let down because,
before they went into coalition with the Tories, the LibDems claimed
to support the future of our postal network.”


ENDS




Note:


1. Speaking at the Liberal Democrat conference on Saturday, Scottish
LibDem leader Tavish Scott claimed: "I want to be very clear what a
future postal service for Scotland must be. Yes explore how best to
keep Royal Mail solvent, to stabilise the business, to modernise the
network. So conference, I am delighted to tell you that I have secured
an agreement from our Business Secretary, Vince Cable. He has
confirmed today, firstly the universal service obligation is a
copper-bottomed guarantee. Posties delivering the same letter at the
same price, anywhere in the UK, whether it is Kensington or Kyelachlan
[sic].”