Written question asked by Nick Gibb (Conservative) on Tuesday, 13 July 1999, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 26 July 1999. It was answered by Ian McCartney (Labour) on Monday, 26 July 1999 on behalf of the Department of Trade and Industry.

Dept of Trade and Industry

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, what measures he has implemented to ensure that the transfer of Royal Mail priority services to Parcel Force does not result in any monopoly services being delivered by Parcel Force.

Answer: Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures he has implemented to ensure that the transfer of Royal Mail Priority Services to Parcelforce does not result in any monopoly services being delivered by Parcelforce. [91735] Mr. Ian McCartney: No monopoly business is carried by Parcelforce. However, as set out in the White Paper, under the transfer of Priority Services much of the operational activity, at least initially, continues to be carried out by Royal Mail. This raises the possibility of the Post Office monopoly business improperly subsidising wider Parcelforce business in the competitive arena. The Government therefore asked its auditors for the Post Office to look at the business case for the transfer; at the basis on which revenues and costs would be treated under the new arrangements; and, in particular, whether this was on a defensible basis from a competition point of view and with accounting transparency. In the light of the advice from the auditors, the Government has confidence that the arrangements are satisfactory. They will continue to be monitored by the auditors until the Regulator has its own arrangements in place.

Secondary information