Royal Mail is paying the price for its failure to deliver

A bitter dispute with its workers threatens to undermine the need for rapid change to stave off terminal decline

As she prepared to leave Royal Mail, chief executive Moya Greene took a final meeting with Terry Pullinger, the union boss who had been a constant thorn in her side.

It was the summer of 2018, and with weeks left before Greene stepped down, Pullinger resisted the urge to revisit his objections to her £2.6m payoff. She repaid the courtesy with assurances that Royal Mail would keep its promises to its 140,000-strong workforce. Despite their many differences the pair warmly shook hands and wished each other well.

Greene had insisted that Rico Back, the German handed a £6m golden hello…