Today, Business Secretary Vince Cable announced that the government will sell Royal Mail. We answer five questions on this latest decision.
How will Royal Mail be sold?
The government will sell off shares in Royal Mail through flotation on the stock market. Employees will also be given 10 per cent shares in the business, which Cable described as “the biggest employee share scheme for nearly 30 years”.
It is thought the sale will value the business at £2-3bn.
What has been the reaction to this news?
Mixed. Members of the Communication Workers Union (CWU) are opposed to the privatisation and have even threatened strike action.
Workers are said to be deeply suspicious of the idea of a share scheme, according to the CWU, which represents about two thirds of the 150,000 workforce.
Business Minister Michael Fallon, writing in The Daily Telegraph, has said that now is the right time to sell Royal Mail.
Chuka Umunna MP, Labour’s shadow business secretary, has said the government is opting for privatisation to “dig the Chancellor, George Osborne, out of a hole of his own making”.
What else has Cable said?
“The Government’s decision is a practical, legal and commercial decision to put Royal Mail’s future on a sustainable basis,” Mr Cable told MPs.
“Now the time has come for government to step back and allow management to focus wholeheartedly on the business. This government will give Royal Mail the real commercial freedom it’s needed for a long time.
“It cannot be right for Royal Mail to come cap in hand to ministers each time it wants to invest and innovate. The public will always want government to invest in schools and hospitals ahead of Royal Mail.”
How well is the Royal Mail currently doing?
The postal service is currently undergoing a facelift, which involves focusing more on parcels and less on letters.
A boom in parcel delivery, largely due to internet shopping, helped Royal Mail more than double its profits last year after years of losses.
Does the sale include the Post Office?
No. The post office is a separate company to Royal Mail. The Post Office is the national network of branches that offer postal, governmental and financial services. Whereas Royal Mail sorts and delivers letters and parcels.
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