I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this important issue. Tomorrow we are faced with a nationwide postal strike which will bring the whole postal service to a halt and will affect all sectors of society. Tomorrow's action is not an isolated occurrence but follows a recent weekend action and previous industrial disputes, all of which indicate an unhealthy situation at An Post and that it is vital that determined action is taken now to ensure a damaging dispute is avoided. It appears there is a total breakdown of trust between management and unions at An Post. The Minister and his colleague in the Department have a responsibility in this regard. A hands-on approach is needed to ensure normal relations are restored and that normal services are provided.
There are many conflicting views emanating about the financial position of An Post. If negotiations or plans for the future are to have any chance of success they must be based on trust and carried out in an environment where full information is made available on the state of An Post. Obviously the financial state of the company is central to negotiations. It is disturbing, therefore, that the forecast made three months before his departure by the former chief executive officer, Mr. John Hynes — that An Post would have a profit of €1 million in 2003 — was rubbished three months later by the new CEO, Mr. Donal Curtin, who made a new forecast of a loss of approximately €46 million. The CEOs contradictory forecasts, which did nothing to create confidence, were so disparate that they warrant a full public inquiry to establish the truth about An Post's finances. I ask the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources to instigate such an inquiry.
I am also concerned about the proposed closure of SDS. All actions being taken to facilitate the closure of SDS should be suspended, pending an independent investigation of the parcel wing of An Post to establish the exact state of its finances. The figures provided by the management of SDS are contradicted by the projections of financial consultants who have been engaged by the Communications Workers Union of Ireland. The union's consultants have forecast that SDS will break even this year, or even make a small profit.
I would like to speak about some of the restructuring proposals made by the management of An Post. As a Deputy who represents a mainly rural constituency, I am alarmed by the proposal to privatise rural deliveries. I oppose the proposal because I foresee that the delivery service provided after privatisation has taken place will be substandard when compared to the service provided at present. People in rural areas are entitled to the same level of service as people in urban areas. The Minister has a role in this regard. Under its universal service obligation, An Post must deliver post to all areas regardless of the cost. A State subvention should be paid to An Post to help it to meet its universal service obligation function. Such a subvention would ensure that An Post's postmen and postwomen can continue to provide rural deliveries in the professional manner we have enjoyed over the years.
The proposed restructuring of An Post will lead to the rationalisation of many delivery offices. The subsequent closure of some post offices and relocation of other post offices to adjacent towns and villages would eventually cause the closure of the entire rural post office network. As a result, local mail would not be sorted in, or delivered from, local post offices. The number of mailbox collection points is to be restricted.
Recent events at An Post are frightening. Trust between management and unions has broken down and there is a lack of clarity about the finances of SDS and the larger An Post group. I question the rationale underlying many of the proposals made by An Post's management, which is refusing to meet the terms of Sustaining Progress. Its denial of cost of living increases constitutes a reduction in wages, in effect. The CEO of An Post has been accused of dismantling partnership, clashing with the company's unions and replacing negotiation and consensus with confrontation. It is time for the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources to intervene to bring sanity to this case before it is too late.