asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he is aware of the urgent need for proper and full post office facilities in Ballyfermot, Dublin; and when they will be provided.
105.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Ballyfermot (Dublin) Post Office Facilities.
104.
asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs whether he will take immediate steps to have a full branch post office, with all facilities, constructed at Ballyfermot, Dublin, in view of the widespread complaints regarding the present service with its inordinate counter delays and lack of certain basic facilities.
With your permission, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Question Nos. 104 and 105 together.
The establishment of a branch Post Office in Ballyfermot would not be justified. The full range of postal counter services is available at the two sub-offices in the area, which are adequate to deal with the amount of business normally transacted. Delay occurs on the day on which children's allowances become payable, but this is unfortunately unavoidable at any office where a large number of people seek payment at the same time. Telegraph facilities are not available at the sub-offices, but telegrams may be sent to the central telegraph office at any time from any public or private telephone in the area. There is a public telephone kiosk outside each office.
Did the Minister say that a full branch post office is not envisaged for the area?
Yes.
I understood there was some move to have such a post office built.
No. There is a new sorting office being erected. It is not a post office.
On days on which old age pensions and children's allowances are being collected it takes an inordinately long time for people to get service, particularly in the Ballyfermot office. Something will have to be done to relieve this congestion. Can the Minister give us any hope of an improvement in the near future?
In any fairly large residential area the collection of children's allowances creates a problem on the first Tuesday of each month. All we could do is to appeal to sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses to lay on additional staff to try to cope with this rush. It is rather difficult to do anything more positive about it. It would be difficult for those people to have part-time employees standing to. It is difficult for them to make some kind of stand-by arrangement for one day each month. Apart from trying to get co-operation in this way, it is not easy to get over it.
106.
asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs the nearest available post office at which a resident of Ballyfermot, Dublin, can purchase a telegraph money order.
The nearest post offices concerned are Inchicore and Chapelizod.
Does the Minister agree that it is a hardship on people to have to go to Chapelizod or Inchicore? Should these facilities not be available in their own localities, particularly when they involve a fundamental service which people should have by right.
The average use made of the Chapelizod office for telegraph purposes is less than one call a day. It is not felt there is a demand for this service here.
107.
asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs the number of sub-offices at present serving the Ballyfermot area, Dublin; their length of time in existence; and, in each case, the name of the subpostmaster/subpostmistress.
There are two offices within the Ballyfermot area, both graded as town sub-offices. The two offices are in existences for 18 and 14 years respectively; Mr. Edward P. Grace is sub-postmaster of the former and Mr. Michael Delaney of the latter.
Can the Minister say if there has been a large increase in population in that area during that period?
There has been an increase in population in that general area but because it is a built-up area the expansion is out from it rather than within it.