Author Topic: Good or bad  (Read 4213 times)

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Offline davybill

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Good or bad
« on: September 12, 2013, 08:02:09 AM »
The government have decided to privatise British mail, is it for the good,or will it get worse

   ;D :(



Offline Somerset Simon

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #1 on: September 12, 2013, 08:38:28 AM »
Can't get any worse when you consider the rise in the price of postage over the last few years!

Offline stoop

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #2 on: September 12, 2013, 09:05:51 AM »
Can it actually get any worse?

Our delivery now arrives about 2pm! 1st Class mail takes 2 days to arrive in many cases. 60p for a first class stamp. 90p if it's thicker than a credit card (I exaggerate but you know what I mean).

I could go on but in short - no I can't see it getting any worse if it's privatised.

Offline KKOB

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #3 on: September 12, 2013, 09:22:57 AM »
It'll get a lot worse for those living in rural areas. Despite the assurances I wouldn't be surprised if they find that they'll only be getting deliveries every 2 or 3 days or that they have to collect their post from designated drop-off points.

Offline Scunner

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #4 on: September 12, 2013, 09:23:24 AM »
I can't see too many companies queuing up to collect an envelope in Kent and deliver it to Aberdeen for 60p.

Offline sadler

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #5 on: September 12, 2013, 09:32:07 AM »
I just thank God for emails and on-line greetings cards! Looking forward to not receiving so much junk mail though. ;D

Offline mog

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #6 on: September 12, 2013, 09:35:18 AM »
I could never see that the privatisation of ANY essential services is a good thing. whether it be the postal service, transport, electricity, gas etc.
How can it be a good thing when it is all about profit and payments to the shareholders. If successive  governments installed the right people to run these services and paid them the going rate, then all profits would go into modernisation instead of into the pockets of the shareholders who's only interest is a return on their investment. I am ONLY talking about essential services, as i am definately not anti capitalist.

Offline SuzzPuss

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #7 on: September 12, 2013, 13:08:22 PM »
I'm always surprised to hear that people find the postal service anything other than amazing.  As Scunner says, they'll deliver a letter virtually anywhere in the country for 60p.  Pretty impressive.  I post things out everyday for work and I've found that first class almost always arrives the next day and 2nd class takes 2 or 3 days.  Maybe 3 or 4 times a year something I've posted gets lost but no more and considering the volume of posting I do I think that's great.

I agree that answering to share-holders can't be a good thing in instances like this.  Share-holders, quite rightly given the point of being a share-holder, expect the price of their shares to rise steadily.  If they don't they'll want to know why.  A cheap and easy short-cut to this is to make cuts, much easier than improving the service and making people want to use it.  Prices will rise, 1st class will become 2 days as standard, 2nd class a week, and that sort of thing will become the new norm.  If you want a faster service than two days you'll pay a premium for it.  Not good news. 

I know that emails etc have made it harder for RM but the increase in online shopping etc should have helped, surely.  Someone needs to find a way to help them cash in on that before they give up and privatise it.   :(

Offline karaokemark

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #8 on: September 12, 2013, 13:51:48 PM »
The big price increases for letters came about because private companies like TNT were allowed to cherry pick RMs profitable business, they are not duty bound by law to deliver a letter from one end of the country to the other like RM. are.
The company is now back in profit that money should be invested in new technology, not going to shareholders.

Offline usedbustickets

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Re: Good or bad
« Reply #9 on: September 12, 2013, 15:17:41 PM »
Based on the evidence of the privatised rail service, electricity and gas (most of which are now foreign owned), water board and telecoms, I expect a worse service at a higher price, and probably German/Dutch ownership. >:(




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