Lord Mandelson says a national postal strike defies logic.

Business secretary Lord Mandelson has said a national postal strike could be catastrophic for the country and hit consumers who are already struggling in the economic downturn.

The Communication Workers Union announced yesterday that industrial action will commence on October 22nd unless the Royal Mail agrees to a last-minute peace offering with certain stipulations.

Lord Mandelson said that companies and members of the public will be the ones to suffer, meaning they may need to seek alternative parcel delivery services such as those offered by Parcel2Go.

"A national postal strike defies logic. It would be a suicidal act - turning more hard-pressed consumers and businesses away from using mail," he stated.

Lord Mandelson added that the Royal Mail needs to modernise and that the move by staff to down tools will stall what is already a much-needed upgrade of facilities and processes.

According to research by online shopping comparison site Kelkoo, a national postal strike will cost the economy as much as £1.5 billion.

Written by Mark Moore


Article Added: 14/10/2009 09:16:15