Alba Party claim Royal Mail should be nationalised following Scexit despite potential £2.6bn cost

The Alba Party has announced that they want to bring Royal Mail back into public hands in the event of Scexit despite the predicted £2.6billion cost of doing so.

Deputy leader Kenny MacAskill made the calls following months of industrial action by postmen and women which has brought postal services to a near standstill.

But despite an independent Scotland almost certain to face a funding shortfall due to getting no more money from the UK Government, the former SNP justice secretary believes they would have the cash to be able to do this.

READ MORE: Ian Blackford’s dedication to Scexit called into question by Alba Party over Labour coalition

Back in 2019, when Labour announced that they wanted to renationalise a number of public services, such as Royal Mail, the water and energy companies and BT, it was predicted that it would cost £2.6bn for the Royal Mail.

Three years on, with inflation at an almost record-high, this would likely to be the kind of money it would take to nationalise the postal service north of the Border.

Since Royal Mail is a publicly limited company, in order to take it back into public hands, all of the shareholders will need to be bought off with a significant cash offer.

But it is one of the services which would need to be negotiated about by both Scotland and the rest of the UK in the event of Scexit so it’s future north of the border would be in jeopardy.

A series of strikes by postal staff has wreaked havoc in the run-up to Christmas with many parcels being delayed by weeks due to no one being able to deliver or process them.

There are about 11,000 Scottish postal workers with the majority of them taking prolonged industrial action during the end of the year to protect their pay and condition.

The Royal Mail was privatised more than 10 years ago when the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition passed an act which saw 90 per cent of it being sold off.

Then, in 2013 shares in the company were floated on the London Stock Exchange, with the last of these being sold off in 2015. Shareholders receive dividends depending on how well the business is doing.

Mr MacAskill said that the Alba Party supported the strikes and that they have “stood in solidarity with members of the CWU and striking postmen and women.”

He added: “The economic impacts of privatisation have exposed the Tories for putting their ideology above the interests of a good public mail service.

“Since the UK Government made the decision to privatise Royal Mail we have seen a company stacked with executives that are more concerned with increasing profits than delivering services. There has been a damaging impact on Scotland where the Royal Mail was the lifeblood of rural communities but these communities are now regularly let down.

“Royal Mail was a national asset that the Tories set out to asset strip. This has led to an unprecedented attack on its workforce and a service that Scotland’s postal workers themselves are unhappy with.

“With independence, Scotland should take Royal Mail back into public ownership. This would be an early sign that independence isn’t just about changing the flag at the top of the castle but changing the people of Scotland’s lives for the better.”

But his plans did not go down too well with some people on social media who queried whether the Alba Party had even costed, or came up with a plan to do this.

Robert Muir said: “Can you link me to how much this would cost and how it would be paid for. Everything is owned by a UK company with shareholders who have rights I expect this is just another grand ill thought out gesture.”

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