Sod off Postman Pat
Discussion
"The Royal Mail pension fund deficit is "significantly larger" than the £5.9bn in the Hooper Review, according to its trustees, in a letter seen by BBC News.
Current government proposals involve the bigger-than-expected shortfall being funded by taxpayers.
In the letter the chair of trustees, Jane Newell, warns that the deficit is so big that the Pension Protection Fund would struggle to support it.
She says that the part-sale of Royal Mail is the only way to save the fund.
The government's proposals, based on the Hooper Review, are due to be introduced in Parliament on Thursday.
The deficit... is highly unlikely to be affordable by Royal Mail, with potentially devastating consequences
Jane Newell
Ministers want to sell a stake of about 30% to the private sector to help pay for the modernisation of the service.
The leaking of the letter this week may be seen as an attempt to assist the passage of the controversial legislation.
'Devastating consequences'
BBC business editor Robert Peston describes the hole in the pension fund as shocking, especially as it is planned to be a liability for taxpayers.
Ms Newell warns that the pension deficit is "highly unlikely to be affordable by Royal Mail, with potentially devastating consequences".
She says that if the pension plan were to be wound up today, it "would not even be able to provide as much as 50% of members' benefits".
The pension plan has 450,000 members.
The government's proposals face opposition from a large number of Labour MPs, with 139 signing a motion opposing a sell-off, and from unions who plan a protest on Tuesday.
But the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have backed the move in principle.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7906820.stm
Lets get them privatised ASAP, lets see if the private sector can sort them out, clearly the taxpayer is just throwing huge amounts of money at the post office for little return.
Current government proposals involve the bigger-than-expected shortfall being funded by taxpayers.
In the letter the chair of trustees, Jane Newell, warns that the deficit is so big that the Pension Protection Fund would struggle to support it.
She says that the part-sale of Royal Mail is the only way to save the fund.
The government's proposals, based on the Hooper Review, are due to be introduced in Parliament on Thursday.
The deficit... is highly unlikely to be affordable by Royal Mail, with potentially devastating consequences
Jane Newell
Ministers want to sell a stake of about 30% to the private sector to help pay for the modernisation of the service.
The leaking of the letter this week may be seen as an attempt to assist the passage of the controversial legislation.
'Devastating consequences'
BBC business editor Robert Peston describes the hole in the pension fund as shocking, especially as it is planned to be a liability for taxpayers.
Ms Newell warns that the pension deficit is "highly unlikely to be affordable by Royal Mail, with potentially devastating consequences".
She says that if the pension plan were to be wound up today, it "would not even be able to provide as much as 50% of members' benefits".
The pension plan has 450,000 members.
The government's proposals face opposition from a large number of Labour MPs, with 139 signing a motion opposing a sell-off, and from unions who plan a protest on Tuesday.
But the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have backed the move in principle.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7906820.stm
Lets get them privatised ASAP, lets see if the private sector can sort them out, clearly the taxpayer is just throwing huge amounts of money at the post office for little return.
stigmundfreud said:
let them be privatised? You clearly are a fool with no concept of when you are on to a good thing
"The Royal Mail pension fund deficit is "significantly larger" than the £5.9bn in the Hooper Review, according to its trustees, in a letter seen by BBC News."Where do you think they money will come from? I'll tell you, mine and every other taxpayers wallet.
Racingdude009 said:
Its that the same Lib Dem and Tory Party that opposed the closure of some uneconomic rural post offices.
Do you think taxes should rise to pay for the post office in its current form? It's all very well saying we must have big government and public services but it's got to be paid for. Edited by Fittster on Tuesday 24th February 01:24
Racingdude009 said:
The Royal Mail is in need of some reform but is part privatisation the answer ?
If it means that they stop coming to the taxpayer for hand outs then yes it is, personally I'd rather see full privatisation. The middle class is broke, worried about his job and pension. They can't afford the luxury of big public services with their final salary pension schemes. The highwater mark for spending has been reached, especially with all the bailouts to pay for.Fittster said:
stigmundfreud said:
let them be privatised? You clearly are a fool with no concept of when you are on to a good thing
"The Royal Mail pension fund deficit is "significantly larger" than the £5.9bn in the Hooper Review, according to its trustees, in a letter seen by BBC News."Where do you think they money will come from? I'll tell you, mine and every other taxpayers wallet.
Give me one expample of a better service
Fittster said:
Racingdude009 said:
The Royal Mail is in need of some reform but is part privatisation the answer ?
If it means that they stop coming to the taxpayer for hand outs then yes it is, personally I'd rather see full privatisation. The middle class is broke, worried about his job and pension. They can't afford the luxury of big public services with their final salary pension schemes. The highwater mark for spending has been reached, especially with all the bailouts to pay for.stigmundfreud said:
Fittster said:
stigmundfreud said:
let them be privatised? You clearly are a fool with no concept of when you are on to a good thing
"The Royal Mail pension fund deficit is "significantly larger" than the £5.9bn in the Hooper Review, according to its trustees, in a letter seen by BBC News."Where do you think they money will come from? I'll tell you, mine and every other taxpayers wallet.
Give me one expample of a better service
te compared to RM.stigmundfreud said:
Fittster said:
stigmundfreud said:
let them be privatised? You clearly are a fool with no concept of when you are on to a good thing
"The Royal Mail pension fund deficit is "significantly larger" than the £5.9bn in the Hooper Review, according to its trustees, in a letter seen by BBC News."Where do you think they money will come from? I'll tell you, mine and every other taxpayers wallet.
Give me one expample of a better service
The only case where privatisation has not worked out well is the rail industry and that is becaused the government did not fully disengage. In other cases privatisation has been a good thing for customers and taxpayer. I don't care if privatisation means that the work force has to face commercial realities and working practices have had to change.
stigmundfreud said:
Fittster said:
Racingdude009 said:
The Royal Mail is in need of some reform but is part privatisation the answer ?
If it means that they stop coming to the taxpayer for hand outs then yes it is, personally I'd rather see full privatisation. The middle class is broke, worried about his job and pension. They can't afford the luxury of big public services with their final salary pension schemes. The highwater mark for spending has been reached, especially with all the bailouts to pay for.For the record I was against the bank bail out and would have let them face the consequences of their actions, that is capitalism.
Fittster said:
stigmundfreud said:
Fittster said:
Racingdude009 said:
The Royal Mail is in need of some reform but is part privatisation the answer ?
If it means that they stop coming to the taxpayer for hand outs then yes it is, personally I'd rather see full privatisation. The middle class is broke, worried about his job and pension. They can't afford the luxury of big public services with their final salary pension schemes. The highwater mark for spending has been reached, especially with all the bailouts to pay for.For the record I was against the bank bail out and would have let them face the consequences of their actions, that is capitalism.
k. Capitalism is a double edged sword. If you can't run a profitable or atleast break even business you should go under. It's the pension fund. So change the rules regarding final salary schemes for the public sector?
The Royal Mail is something which is, IMHO, a necessity in the UK and as such should remain the preserve of the state. A bit like the provision of water to households, but that's another story.
The Royal Mail is something which is, IMHO, a necessity in the UK and as such should remain the preserve of the state. A bit like the provision of water to households, but that's another story.
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