Post Office 'to keep card account'

Well we have finally got what we have been campaigning for. The Post Office Card Account (POCA) has been awarded to the Post Offices and not to PayPoint. See below my Press Release sent to day to our local Media.

Heather Wheeler, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for South Derbyshire, has given her wholehearted support to the Government announcement today for retaining the Post Office Card Account with the Post Offices and not award it to PayPoint.

She said “I have been campaigning in South Derbyshire for the Government to stop dithering and make a decision in favour of the Post Offices. The indecision over whether the POCA would be re-awarded to our Post Offices was having a destabilising affect. Sub-Postmasters did not know whether to invest further in these vital local businesses. If the POCA had not been awarded it could have led to the whole scale closing of 3,000 Post Offices which would have been devastating. We have suffered the loss of 3 Post Offices (Church Gresley, Egginton and Newton Solney) recently following the sham consultation and this would have been the nail in the coffin for others in South Derbyshire. My campaigning with updates shown on my website heatherwheeler.org..uk has kept everyone locally informed of progress in Parliament and I am delighted that finally we have the right decision.”

The Government is set to end months of speculation over the future of a card account used by millions of people to receive benefits and pensions, giving an expected boost to the Post Office.

Work and Pensions Secretary James Purnell will issue a statement to the Commons which is expected to signal that the Post Office will retain the contract.

Subpostmasters, union leaders and MPs had warned that thousands of branches would close if the contract was given to a rival firm.

The contract for the Post Office Card Account was put out to tender, with PayPoint and another firm expressing an interest.

The Federation of SubPostmasters said 3,000 branches would close if the contract was not renewed, while leading Labour MP John McFall warned it could be double that.

The Department for Work and Pensions refused to confirm or deny that a decision had been taken, saying only that an announcement would be made "as soon as possible".

The card account contract runs out in 2010 and an announcement had been expected in the summer. The delay fuelled speculation that a rival firm would be given the work.

Two million people signed a petition and 265 MPs from all parties signed a parliamentary motion calling for it to stay with the Post Office.

Earlier this week Mr Purnell told MPs an decision would be made "very soon", but stressed that he must first go through all the necessary procedures.

He told the House of Commons: "The decision has to be taken in due order and I cannot take a decision before all the necessary options have been completed. The worst possible thing would be to take a decision which then got unwound."