To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what opportunities post offices have to expand the range of goods and services they offer. (147218)

The sub-postmasters and mistresses who own and operate 97 per cent. of the 14,000 post offices in the network are private business people. They are free to develop their associated retail businesses and pursue commercial arrangements with whoever they want to so long as the products provided are not in direct competition with key Post Office products that provide income to support the network.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what new products and services have been developed by the Post Office with the aim of encouraging the recruitment of sub-postmasters. (147220)

The development of new Post Office products and services is an operational matter for the company’s management. In recent years Post Office Ltd. has worked hard to introduce new products and services to replace traditional declining markets. Post Office Ltd. is now the largest provider of foreign currency in the UK and the third largest provider of travel insurance. The Post Office is also the UK’s fifth largest fixed-line telephone service provider and opened 175,000 Instant Saver Accounts in the product’s first year. More products are in the pipeline including a broadband service in partnership with BT.