Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions he has had with Ofcom on the causes of delays in the delivery of first class post by Royal Mail in (a) the UK (b) Hampshire.

Ministers and officials meet with Ofcom regularly to discuss a range of issues in relation to its role as the independent regulator for the postal sector.

It is for Ofcom to decide how to respond should Royal Mail fail to meet its obligations. While the government does not have a role in Ofcom’s regulatory decisions, in January, I met with representatives from Ofcom to discuss the importance of Royal Mail’s quality of service performance.

The government expects that Ofcom will continue to closely monitor Royal Mail’s performance and take action where appropriate.