LEICHHARDT MP Warren Entsch is reassuring residents and businesses in Bloomfield, Ayton, Rossville, Lions Den and Wujal Wujal that the proposed reduction to Australia Post delivery services will not go ahead.
“I was recently contacted by Bloomfield constituents and also Cook Shire Council Mayor Peter Scott, all very disappointed that the mail delivery for these areas had been reduced to a twice-a-week service,” Mr Entsch said.
“They told me that the reduction in service was impacting heavily on the residents who live in these communities. Due to the remoteness of the area, people rely on the regular mail service to receive correspondence and packages, especially given the growth in online shopping.”
Mr Entsch said he immediately contacted our local Australia Post manager, Shane Walsh at the Cairns Mail Centre, to find out what the story was.
“Shane advised me that the Australia Post delivery contractor had recently retired, and Australia Post had decided not to renew the contract for Saturday deliveries.
“As a result, the mail delivery service would only continue on Tuesdays and Fridays, rather than Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays as in the past.
“In my view, this is unacceptable because these small communities aren’t in close proximity to a large centre where they could easily collect mail.
“In Wujal, because the Council offices close at 1pm on Fridays, they would miss the Friday delivery and consequently only have one delivery during a working week.
“There are also people who don’t like to use online banking and prefer paper bills, but delays in receiving their bills and then posting back cheques mean they can quickly become overdue and incur fees.
“Shane acknowledged all our concerns and as a result, has committed to putting the delivery contract out to tender for a three-times-a-week delivery service, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. This brings these areas in line with delivery schedules in other regional areas.
“Australia Post’s commitment to put the contract out to tender is a good result for these communities and I’d like to thank Shane for recognising the region’s unique needs and for being so willing to reconsider Australia Post’s position on this.
“If there are any local people wanting to put in a tender for the contract then I’d strongly urge them to do so.”
