ALMOST all delegates arriving at this week’s STUC Congress in Dundee this week will have had their credentials delivered by CWU members who work in Scotland’s postal service. While the STUC’s longevity is notable in reaching this, its 127th Congress, it is nonetheless dwarfed in comparison to the institution that is the UK’s postal service, which has been operating for over 500 years.

The Royal Mail, the backbone of Britain’s postal service, plays a vital role in Scotland, ensuring the timely delivery of letters, parcels, banners, leaflets, ballots, journals, and copies of esteemed (and not so esteemed) newspapers, as well as other essential services, especially in our remote rural areas. However, despite its illustrious history, the future of this vital service is under serious threat. 

Readers may be aware that earlier this year, Ofcom published a report into the future of the universal service obligation (USO), citing declining letter volumes and diminishing user needs as motivation for proposing various cuts to the service, most of which could severely damage postal services.