Fitzmaurice calls on Minister to reverse PO closures

Junior Minister Sean Canney has been urged to reverse the decision to close rural post offices or risk being accused of “playing Mighty Mouse in Galway and Mini Mouse in Dublin”.

Independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice said it was time for his fellow Independent – recently appointed minister of state at the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment with responsibility for natural resources, community affairs and digital development – to take an immediate stand on this issue and look after the people working and living in rural Ireland.

“The Minister needs to show that it is he, and not the civil servants, who is running the department,” he argued.

“It appears as if his coalition bosses are up to their old tricks of closing rural Ireland by stealth.

“He must stand up for the rural post office or he will leave himself open to the charge of playing Mighty Mouse in Galway and then turning into Mini Mouse in Dublin.”

A total of 18 post offices in Galway are set to close under new consolidation plans negotiated by An Post and the Irish Postmasters’ Union.

The post offices earmarked for closure are in Ballyconnelly, Ballyglunin, Ballymoe, Cloghbrack, Colemanstown, Cornamora, Eyrecourt, Garrafrances, Glinsk, Inverin, Kiltulla, Kylebrack, Lettermullen, Menlough, Moyard, New Inn, Renvyle, and Woodlawn.

Last month villagers in Eyrecourt staged a protest about the loss of their post office, claiming the €80,000 in pensions and social welfare payments could now benefit the Offaly village of Banagher, the location of the nearest post office.

An application to retain a postal service by shop owner Dermot Duffy was refused because Banagher was less than 15km away from Eyrecourt, which also did not have 500 residents – breaching criteria set down by An Post.

Deputy Fitzmaurice, whose own village of Glinsk will lose its post office, said closing 160 outlets would “hammer the final nail in the coffin of many communities in rural Ireland”.

“Where will it all in end? If the services available in rural parts of the country continue to be cut at the current rate, there will be nothing left in just a few short years.

“Businesses – such as shops and pubs, which are struggling to survive as it is – which avail of the services provided by their local post offices may also be forced to consider closing in the wake of losing their nearest outlet,” he said.

“These post offices provided businesses in their locality with a lifeline which allowed them to grow and prosper. The services available also allowed people living in the area to conduct their business close to home.”

People forced to travel an additional 15km to collect a payment may end up spending that money there rather than in their village, which would lead to the closure of other businesses.

“This Government of the posh Dublin 4 boys is a disgrace. When it comes to rural Ireland – between railways, pubs, Garda stations and post offices – it is running out of things to close; and in the case of broadband it appears to be incapable of building anything.”

Deputy Canney did not respond when contacted by the Connacht Tribune.