Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:03 pm on 14 December 2016.
Well, I’m not sure if that’s entirely correct, Cabinet Secretary, because there is a duty at the moment for the Post Office to ensure that there is provision within some 3 miles of 95 per cent of the rural community in the UK. That is being reviewed as part of the proposals put forward by the UK Government at the moment, and who knows what the outcome of that will be. But certainly, it’s a cause of concern for us all, and on top of that, we know that the subsidy provided by the Westminster Government to the post office network will lapse in a little over a year, in March 2018. Now, with post offices at their busiest, of course, at this Christmas period, can you tell us what input you as a Government have had into this review that is ongoing, particularly bearing in mind, of course, that only last week the First Minister told me, in response to a question on the future of rural banks, that his priority now is to secure the future of the post office network, because they can provide certain services in banking? Would you agree with me, Cabinet Secretary, that the best way now of securing the future of our post offices in Wales is to ensure that it’s all devolved to us here?