I AM writing to report on an alarming development regarding the closure of rural Post Offices.

The village of Redbrook has had a nice little PO within the village shop that has been open in the afternoons and has provided a useful service to the village and surrounding area.

Now I hear that it is open on Tuesday only from 12 until 5pm. What use is this if one has a parcel to send on a Wednesday?

The alternative is to use another Post Office (if you can find one) and that is what most people will do, thus giving ammunition to the authorities to say that the provision of the service at this particular village PO is not viable. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Apparently the Post Office has only ever funded five hours per week and the extra hours were worked for the benefit of the community without funding from the Post Office. Alas, understandably, staff can no longer afford to work without pay.

Moreover, whereas one could previously leave parcels and large envelopes that will not fit through the outside post box for the postman to collect in his mailbag kept inside the shop, this service has been withdrawn officially apart from on Tuesdays. The alternative is to hover in the vicinity when the postman is due and place it in his hands. Some postmen will agree to pick up mail from inside the shop, again for the benefit of customers, but as one does not know which postman is working on a particular day this will be very hit and miss.

Redbrook has the only Post Office still in existence in five surrounding villages – Penallt, Llandogo, Newland, Clearwell and St Briavels – so this will potentially inconvenience a lot of people. 

There is reported to be an increase in the number of people buying their stamps online. As far as I can see from the website this is only applicable for the purchase of stamps in bulk or printing out a stamp on a envelope using 'Smart Stamp' and does not address the problem of parcels, which have to be weighed. This system may be useful for small businesses but is hardly applicable to the ordinary customer. And, of course, you need a computer and broadband. 

The postal authorities were asked to review the situation of funding hours at Redbrook but came to the conclusion that five hours a week is sufficient.

What kind of Alice in Wonderland country are we living in? On the one hand, the government is encouraging us to use the PO more through the provision of services at the counter, while on the other hand it is allowing access to these services to be curtailed. I understand that one of the options being considered to replace the cheque clearing system (on which I hope to report later) is a card that can be used for cash withdrawal at guess where? Your local Post Office, which doesn't exist any more. 

What incentive is there for older people, perhaps with limited mobility and/or access to transport to live in a rural area? Maybe what the authorities secretly want is a special reservation where all older people will be corralled to live out their twilight years.

But we continue to pay taxes and provide, in the main, the hard-working base on which the voluntary services rest! There's an awful lot of us around now, all with votes, and a government antagonises us at its peril. 

– Daphne Pearson (Dr), Redbrook.