WELSH Conservative Regional Assembly Member for North Wales, Brynle Williams AM, has criticised the Post Office Network and Labour MP Martyn Jones, following a public meeting over the planned closure of Llandrillo Post Office. Mr Williams said:

“Having met and spoken with local residents, I believe that there is an incredibly strong case for this Post Office to remain open."

“This was evident in the fact that over 60% of the village turned out for the public meeting, which packed out the community hall.

“The people of Llandrillo have made their voices heard, and they don’t want an outreach unit, they want to keep their Post Office branch open.

“I am amazed that the local Labour MP, who voted with his Government to slash the number of Post Office branches, isn’t prepared to back their policy in public.

“Labour MPs across North Wales have already betrayed voters by campaigning against Post Office closures in their constituencies but doing nothing about it at Westminster.

“If the post office is closed, then the village shop will be next in line, and the loss of both will be a serious blow to this vibrant community.

“The Post Office’s plans will replace the Llandrillo branch with a mobile unit that will only visit the community on certain days and for a few hours at a time.”

“I am deeply concerned that no information has been made public on the costs of keeping the branch open.

“If the current plans go ahead, people will be forced to fit around a timetable for accessing Post Office services.

“This is incredibly restrictive for those who work and the elderly, who will have no shelter accessing services in the wind and rain.

“Outreach services like mobile units are certainly better than no service at all, but they are a very poor substitute for the real thing.”