Performance of Royal Mail

Debate between Claire Hazelgrove and Tom Morrison

Monday 26th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Mr Morrison]

The hon. Member makes a really important point. We have seen through door knocking in my constituency that people are now less willing to take a postal vote, which could have real implications for our democratic process going forward.

How does this situation get resolved? I want to make it clear that this issue does not land at the feet of our postal workers.

[Claire Hazelgrove (Filton and Bradley Stoke) (Lab)]

I draw the House’s attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests regarding the CWU. On that precise point, does the hon. Gentleman agree that this really is not the fault of our dedicated postal workers? In fact, it is a real loss across the country, and certainly in my constituency, to see many dedicated and long-serving postal workers stepping away from roles that they have held for decades because of the uncertainty and the workload that they face.

[Mr Morrison]

The hon. Lady makes a really important point. Royal Mail used to be characterised by a really low turnover of staff, but that is changing rapidly, and the culture of the workplace is changing with it.

Following on from that point, I visited sorting offices in my constituency last year and talked through the issues that the postal workers faced. They work in incredibly hard conditions, but that is being made even worse, because senior management cannot get a grip. It is the so-called leaders at the top who are failing and leaving staff lower down to get the blame and angst from angry customers.