The Greater London Authority’s application for a judicial review of post office closures in the capital has been rejected by the High Court prompting Mayor Boris Johnson to call on the Government to save the threatened branches.
Following news of the High Court’s decision Mr Johnson has written to John Hutton, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, calling on him to “take urgent action to save London’s post offices”.
In his letter Johnson says he continued with the legal action started by former Mayor Ken Livingstone “because London has already experienced disproportionately high levels of post office closures in recent years compared with other areas of the country.”
In a statement issued this afternoon Mayor Johnson said the GLA has tried to avoid the closures by passing additional business such as the processing of Oyster Zip cards to Post Office branches.
As the sole shareholder in the Post Office the Mayor said it was “high time the Government acknowledged it’s responsibility and intervened. Post Offices provide a vital local service for communities, especially the elderly and families and they must be protected.”
Mr Johnson promised he would “continue with every enthusiasm to support the people of London who are campaigning against local post office closures across the city.”