Liberal Democrats demand urgent action over Bedford’s ‘shambolic’ postal service
Councillor Henry Vann, Leader of the Bedford Borough Liberal Democrats, has written to Royal Mail Chief Executives, demanding urgent intervention to fix the severe delivery chaos gripping the Borough. Henry Vann has called on the Royal Mail senior management to immediately send urgent help to the Bedford Delivery Office.
The local crisis in MK40 – MK45 postcodes is clear in Royal Mail’s own service data. Royal Mail’s website shows that Bedford is suffering from "local resourcing issues" and "sick absence," triggering "rotating delivery" strategies.
Cllr Henry Vann said:
"The state of our postal service in Bedford is completely shambolic. It is the worst I have ever seen it. We have residents concerned about missing critical NHS appointments and small businesses losing revenue because letters are sitting in sorting offices for weeks.”
“Residents have told me about a whole week or more’s worth of mail arriving at once. Letters are not prioritised, meaning that vital medical correspondence, bills and other important notifications are at risk. In some cases, going missing. This is to say nothing of cards and messages from friends and family.”
"Mail is a vital public service. Royal Mail's own statistics prove this is a systemic management failure and our posties need backup. Blaming staff shortages while refusing to invest in permanent local solutions is a slap in the face to our community. We need an immediate end to 'rotating deliveries' and a clear timeline for when a reliable service will return."
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