POSTAL PRIVATISATION - No benefit, says report
WORKERS, JUNE 2008 ISSUE
The government's strategy of opening up the postal market to private sector competition has provided "no significant benefits" for households or for smaller businesses, while representing a "substantial threat" to the Royal Mail's future, says an independent report by former media regulator Richard Hooper. Only large companies have benefited.
Mainstream coverage of the report failed to mention that the liberalisation was introduced by the EU Postal Services Directive. On 10 June 2002, the European Parliament and the Council formally adopted its Postal Directive 2002/39/E, which amended the initial Postal Directive (97/67/EC) by defining further steps in the process of market opening.