To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will make a statement on the planned location of new outreach post offices within West Dorset constituency. (153867)

No proposals or decisions have yet been made on any new outreach post office locations in West Dorset. Post Office Ltd is now progressively developing proposals for network change in area plans based on groupings of parliamentary constituencies. These will then be subject to local public consultation after input from sub-postmasters, Postwatch and local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what proportion of post offices planned for closure within West Dorset constituency are in (a) rural and (b) urban areas. (153870)

No proposals or decisions have yet been made on post office closures in West Dorset. Post Office Ltd. is now progressively developing proposals for network change in area plans based on groupings of parliamentary constituencies. These will then be subject to local public consultation after input from sub-postmasters, Postwatch and local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the timescale is for planned post office closures within West Dorset constituency in the period up to the end of 2009. (153871)

Post Office Ltd. wrote to all Members of Parliament in July explaining the process they will be following in implementing the network change programme and giving the expected timetable for considering the area plan in their constituency. I understand from the company that it expects to engage with sub-postmasters in the process of developing specific proposals for West Dorset in April 2008.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many outreach post offices will open in West Dorset constituency during the planned post office closure programme. (153872)

No proposals or decisions have yet been made on how many outreach post office locations may be established in West Dorset. Post Office Ltd. is now progressively developing proposals for network change in area plans based on groupings of parliamentary constituencies. These will then be subject to local public consultation after input from sub-postmasters, Postwatch and local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many post offices are planned for closure within West Dorset constituency. (153895)

No proposals or decisions have yet been made on post office closures in West Dorset. Post Office Ltd is now progressively developing proposals for network change in area plans based on groupings of parliamentary constituencies. These will then be subject to local public consultation after input from sub-postmasters, Postwatch and local authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the (a) opening times and (b) services of the new outreach post offices will be, with particular reference to the post offices to be located in the West Dorset parliamentary constituency. (153932)

Decisions about local service offerings and opening hours at outreach post offices are a matter for Post Office Ltd and local sub-postmasters, reflecting the needs and demand in local communities both in West Dorset and across the country. It is not appropriate to seek to set national standards for matters which are best considered at local level.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the timescale is for the opening of new outreach post offices within the West Dorset parliamentary constituency; and if he will make a statement. (153933)

The opening of any new outreach post offices in West Dorset will be integrated with the implementation of the wider network change programme for the area. I understand that under Post Office Ltd's planned timetable this would be in autumn 2008.