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“Some have had to borrow money because bank cards were delayed for weeks. Others have had utility bills arriving the same day as final reminders”
An all party group of Lagan Valley councillors is set for “urgent” talks with Royal Mail over concerns a major postal delay is causing medical and financial distress to local residents.
Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council unanimously approved a motion this week to engage with the delivery company on a failure to provide a first class service.
Royal Mail has publicly confirmed it is experiencing high levels of staff sickness and resource pressures, leading to recent service delays in a number of UK postal areas including Lisburn and Banbridge.
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Bringing forward the motion, Downshire West DUP Alderman Allan Ewart said: “May I state that this is not an attack on our postal staff who are doing their best to keep the service going. However, the lack of a reliable postal delivery service across our council is causing a lot of concern for residents, businesses and the most vulnerable members of our society.
“Postal service are not a luxury they are and essential service that people depend on for receiving bills, medical appointments, financial information and important personal correspondence.
“Royal Mail used to be a first class business, was sold at a second class price and now they operate a third class service. Delays in the service are creating real hardship.”
In April 2025, a Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky’s EP Group bought over Royal Mail’s parent company in a £3.6bn deal, becoming the first foreign owner of the 500 year old institution.
Under the terms of the deal, the EP Group was to maintain the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service Obligation (USO). This obligation currently means it must deliver letters six days per week, Monday to Saturday, and parcels Monday to Friday.
Alderman Ewart added: “In our council area we deserve the same standard of service as anywhere else. Residents pay for postal service and should not be left facing ongoing disruption without clear communication, accountability or a timeline for solutions.
“Urgent action is needed to restore a dependable, consistent postal service across the area. Clear updates, transparency about staffing, operational issues and a firm plan to resolve the situation would go along way towards rebuilding confidence.
“This is the reason why I am asking for an all party meeting with Royal Mail to ascertain where we are at the moment with deliveries and how they propose to get out of this present mess.”
The council has commended the work of postal workers, with the chamber being told that additional delivery duties have been introduced in the Lisburn area, covering around 400 homes.
An amendment to the motion by Downshire East Alliance councillor Kurtis Dickson saying: “The council acknowledges that service challenges at Royal Mail are linked to wider resourcing, staffing and organisational issues rather than the efforts of frontline employees.”
He added: “Right now, people across this council area are going weeks without a single letter. Not days. Weeks. Only for a bundle of envelopes to land on the mat at once, some of them a month old.
“One constituent received a hospital appointment letter the day after the appointment had already passed. Another received a letter threatening to discharge them from a waiting list they had been on for years.
“Some have had to borrow money because bank cards were delayed for weeks. Others have had utility bills arriving the same day as final reminders.
“For people who don’t have access to online services and rely on the post these delays have caused significant distress. It is simply not good enough.”
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