Committee publication · Correspondence · 27 March 2026
Letter to Royal Mail and EP Group relating to the Committee's evidence session on Royal Mail, 27 March 2026
From: Business and Trade Committee
Inquiry: Royal Mail
Summary
The Business and Trade Committee chair writes to Royal Mail's CEO and EP Group's president following a 27 March evidence session, seeking urgent answers on service improvement plans, CWU negotiations, investment targets, staffing levels, and operational metrics. The letter reflects Committee concern that Royal Mail's improvement plan—flagged as urgent by Ofcom in October 2025—remains unpublished five months later and is contingent on unresolved USO reform.
Key findings
- Royal Mail's improvement plan, described as 'urgent' by Ofcom in October 2025, is five months overdue and remains unpublished pending CWU negotiations.
- Daniek Křetínský acknowledged Royal Mail's service 'falls far short of what the nation expects' and stated reform to the Universal Service Obligation (USO) is essential: there is 'no way to fix' Royal Mail without it.
- Royal Mail plans £100+ million annual investment in quality of service over five years but Committee demands breakdown by metric, funding source (including stamp pricing), and Ofcom sign-off.
- Local managers hold delegated authority to prioritise parcels over letters based on sickness/vacancy rates, but Royal Mail does not centrally track how often this contingency is triggered.
- CWU reports 50% staff turnover within first 12 months; Committee seeks details on vacancy rates, sickness absence, delivery van fleet capacity, and managerial culture change progress.
Tone
CriticalTopics
Key actors
Liam Byrne MP, Alistair Cochrane, Daniel Křetínský, EP Group, Royal Mail, Communication Workers Union, Ofcom, Dave Ward
Notable line
“It now falls on both of you to remedy this situation – urgently.”
Key Quotes
“I welcome Mr Křetínský's acknowledgement that the service provided by Royal Mail falls far short of what the nation expects.”
“This plan was described as "urgent" by Ofcom in October 2025, and is now five months late.”
“… there is "no way to fix" Royal Mail's service”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗