Postmasters' union calls for €15m in Government funding to prevent post office decline 

An Post chief executive David McRedmond will outline the main issues facing An Post as a business that need to be addressed by the Government, including the need to reshape the universal postal service to match the changing demands. Picture: Leah Farrell/RollingNews.ie

The Irish Postmasters' Union (IPU) is to call on the Government to invest €15m per year over the next five years to prevent a decline in post offices.

The IPU will tell the Oireachtas Arts and Community Committee today that current funding, which will cease at the end of this year, prevented closures and stabilised the network but unless it is replaced and adjusted, decline will begin again.

President of the IPU president Sean Martin said that the postal network is not a legacy system, but a living infrastructure at risk of being lost.

The committee will hear that the investment, recommended by a Grant Thornton report and validated by An Post, equates to just €3 per citizen annually and in return, the State would secure and strengthen a national asset.

Grant Thornton said the post office network generates up to €776m each year in social and economic value.

Mr Martin will highlight the resilience and importance of the services provided by the post office in terms of providing access to welfare payments, cash, and connection, especially during the covid pandemic and recent storms such as Storm Éowyn.

In 2024, post offices processed 82m transactions at a total value of €14bn, with €12bn of this in cash. It also processed €7bn in social welfare payments.

An Post chief executive David McRedmond will outline the main issues facing An Post as a business that need to be addressed by the Government, including the need to reshape the universal postal service to match the changing demands.

With 70% of activity across the An Post retail business relating to Government contracts, there is a need for strategic approach to Government pricing.

The committee will hear that the borrowing cap, which was set in 1985, is out of date and insufficient and must be increased immediately as it is restricting the ability to build for the future.

Senior officials in the Department of Culture, Communications, and Sport will say that the Government is committed to supporting the post office network but, as with any business, post offices must work to continue to develop commercial strategies to attract customers and generate growth.

With the support of the Government, An Post must ensure its commercial viability and the continued fulfilment of its mandate to provide a mail delivery service and ensure a viable postal network.