Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect on post offices of the decision to award the commercial contract for accepting welfare payments to other parts of the financial sector.

The contract for the Post Office card account or its successor scheme is a commercial matter for the Department for Work and Pensions.

Post Office Ltd. is committed to remaining the main channel to ensure individuals and businesses can conveniently access and deposit cash. The Post Office is working with HM Treasury, financial services regulators and the financial industry to make sure that the most vulnerable who still rely on cash, can continue to access basic banking services conveniently and for free.

The sustainability and future success of the post office network remain of the utmost importance to the Government. The £227 million funding the Government has committed through the 2019 Spending Review provides Post Office Ltd with funds to support post offices across the UK and invest in the future of the business.