Southend MP says Royal Mail delays are "unacceptable" as he hosts public meeting to share resident's concerns
David Burton-Sampson says postage services "must improve"
The MP for Southend West and Leigh, David Burton-Sampson, says Royal Mail's postage delays are "unacceptable", as he is urging them to fix issues.
He is hosting a public meeting with them today, so locals can share their experiences and concerns.
He says that he has been told the problem has been fixed multiple times, yet insists that it has not been solved, as some of his constituents still face delays.
Royal Mail say they are aware of an issue in Southend, and they are working with local stakeholders to ensure it is addressed
David said that he "hopes to achieve some improvements in the services we are seeing from Royal Mail.
"Quite simply, since last Summer, the service has been absolutely unacceptable, and despite being given numerous promises from Royal Mail that the service would be improving, we have not seen any improvements at all.
"If anything, we have seen services getting worse. So I have had enough of this, as have my constituents, my residents, and they want to tell Royal Mail for themselves the impact this is having on their lives on a day-to-day basis.
"So I want them to listen, and I want them to tell us how they are going to get this service back in order and quick."
The Southend West and Leigh MP also published a letter he has sent to Royal Mail to the public, in which he states:
"I continue to hear from my constituents that post is severely delayed."
"Some constituents have told me they have not received important documentation in time, such as DBS certificates, which has caused one constituent to lose a job offer. Some have said they ended up in debt due to not being informed of fines and fees in time, or they have missed hospital appointments."
A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We know how important it is that customers receive their mail on time, particularly when it includes important items. Recent UK-wide figures show around 92% of letters arrive on time, but we recognise performance is not yet where it needs to be in all areas.
“Where there are local issues, these are typically caused by temporary resourcing pressures and we focus on restoring normal service as quickly as possible.
“We are aware of concerns raised in Southend and are engaging with local stakeholders to ensure any issues are addressed.”