INVERELL-based Senator John Williams has allayed fears of regional postal services being affected by Australia Post’s major profit losses.
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Australia Post is expected to have a full-year loss of $500 million, with the mail business losing $1.5 billion in the past five years and delivering 1.2 billion fewer letters than it did seven years ago.
Senator Williams said Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour told him he hoped it would turn around.
“He’s saying he can turn it around and hold the show together and he’s pretty confident of that,” he said.
Senator Williams said regional services were safe, because the licensed post offices were doing it tough, but were not guaranteed of getting the recently announced $30,000 minimum yearly payments from Australia Post, regardless of size.
“He (Mr Fahour) told me personally that he could turn it around and I’m confident of that,” Senator Williams said.
“The worry we had was licensed post offices closing down and it looks like they’ve been saved.”
He said the mail decrease was due to an increase in electronic communications, with 400 billion emails sent each year in Australia.
Earlier this year the federal government approved changes to mail delivery. A new regular service will provide the cheapest option for people to send non-urgent mail, which will be delivered two days slower than the current timetable, and a priority service will cost more.
Mail will continue to be delivered five days a week.
Australia Post said it remained committed to maintaining its 4400 post offices.
