Along with just about everyone in Blackpool, I am appalled at proposals to shut the town centre Post Office. I can see no logic to the decision. But then I cannot claim to be surprised either. Across the UK more than 4,600 post offices have closed since Labour came to power in 1997 – an average of 580 a year. Blackpool is just one of 70 of the ‘larger’ Crown Post Offices in major towns which are to be transferred to WH Smith’s. Over the last few years, the focus has been on the closure of sub-post offices. Now it seems the Royal Mail is turning on the larger branches too. Apparently the Chief Executive of the Royal Mail, Adam Crozier, was on FiveLive this morning and said that the plans for closing the 70 Crown Post Offices would save money, enabling more to be spent on other Crown Post Offices. Our nearest alternative is Preston. I’m sure it doesn’t need me to point out that would be yet another nail in the coffin of Blackpool trying to maintain a separate commercial identity to Preston.

WH Smith’s in Blackpool is not the most spacious branch of that chain as it is, and think how much more cramped it will be after crow-barring a large post office in there. The range of books stocked can only shrink. With Waterstones responding to the internet by shutting many of its smaller branches – maybe including Blackpool – the outlook for Blackpool’s book-buyers is potentially grim.

With fewer and fewer services available at the Post Office thanks to Govenment manipulation and Royal Mail neglect, is it maybe time we looked at trying to co-locate many council services in the Crown Post Offices, which could then leverage off each other. This could well save council taxpayers’ money rather than building expensive service centres?