All cardies urged to sign call for parliamentary scrutiny of plans to change USO
The GCA’s petition asking for parliamentary scrutiny of any plans to amend the universal service obligation affecting Royal Mail’s service has gone live on the government website as association met with the new team at postal industry watchdog Ofcom yesterday afternoon, 7 January.
The next Ofcom announcement on Royal Mail’s bid to change its obligations to deliver letters six days a week and parcels five days to every address in the UK for the same price is expected in February, so the GCA is now urging everyone in the greeting card industry to sign the petition which can be accessed here or by scanning the QR code pictured.
GCA CEO Amanda Fergusson and council member David Byk, who runs Ling Design and GBCC, were in discussions yesterday with the Ofcom regulator team who will be considering Royal Mail’s bid to slash second-class deliveries, where the price is regulated and currently held at 85p, to three or even two days a week while claiming keeping six-day first-class deliveries would uphold the USO.
However, first-class stamp prices are unregulated and the 22% hike to £1.65 in October was the second inflation-busting rise in 2024, and the fifth increase in three years, making the stamp cost 117% more over the past four years while service levels have fallen.
Amanda and David also raised concerns over the trials revealed last week where Royal Mail is about to pilot cuts to second class letter deliveries which were initially thought to be just stopping on Saturdays, but it’s now understood to be Royal Mail’s suggested every other day service, meaning one week will only be on Tuesday and Thursday and the next on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
The 37 trial locations have not been revealed but the pilot is expected to take place at around three offices in each of Royal Mail’s 12 regions to ensure an even spread across the country affecting around one million households, while first-class letters deliveries will still be made on all six days – as will parcels even though the USO only applies to letters.
The GCA petition – more detail is available on the association website – calls on the government to amend legislation to require parliamentary scrutiny on any change to the USO and insist such changes would be dependent on Royal Mail meeting existing performance delivery targets for letters and cards – where it has failed to do so for the past four years and was fined £10.5million by Ofcom in December following a £5.6m penalty in 2023.
The association is also pushing for the price of first-class post to be regulated to avoid further above-inflation rises and for the government to insist Royal Mail maintains an affordable and reliable postal service that supports High Streets and communities across the UK.
“Our intention is to share this petition with the media later this month,” Amanda said, “in the meantime we are keen to get as many signatures as possible. We would ask everyone in the trade to sign it and encourage their teams, customers, suppliers and consumers to sign it too.”
