Special Report:SECTION 5 SAVE OUR ROYAL MAIL CAMPAIGN

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SECTION 5 SAVE OUR ROYAL MAIL CAMPAIGN


We set out a clear plan to create a campaign based on a coalition of organisations that would be interested in coming together to Save Our Royal Mail.

To maximise inclusion and to broaden the coalition, we focused the coalition campaign on price rises, rural service, services to the blind and armed forces and the threat to the universal service.

The coalition was quickly successful in acquiring the support of the countryside alliance, some business groups and consumer groups. The coalition has focused on pressurising Conservative and Liberal Democratic MPs whilst also gaining media publicity.

The coalition has being carrying out meetings with MPs and stakeholders and building support around the threat to the universal service and the impact of price rises on small businesses. At the time of writing several conservative MPs are calling for a back bench committee debate on the floor of the House of Commons.

In addition the coalition has been working with financial PR experts to create a negative narrative about the sale in the city. This has also seen commentators including the FT raising concerns about a potential sale price. This supports our efforts to persuade Conservative MPs to raise concerns regarding value for money for the tax payer. These political efforts have made progress and it is clear that the Government is still not confident about the type or timing of any sale.

One area where we need to raise our efforts was increasing awareness of the public and filling MPs mailbags with letters from constituents. To bridge this gap we launched the postcard campaign alongside a week of campaign activity. We have also launched a high profile online campaign. There is a targeted Save Our Royal Mail website which links visitors to the write to them.com website and to an online petition at change.org. We continue to drive traffic to the online campaign. It remains our aim to consistently raise the profile of the sale of Royal Mail to the public, to the media and to MPs.

One of the most significant developments of the campaign has been the intervention of the Bow Group. This is a conservative lead think tank that is very influential among Tory MPs and Ministers. Initially the Bow Group expressed reservation about privatisation and are now set to publish a report that has taken views from across the political spectrum. We expect that report to come out against privatisation and this will be a significant step for the campaign.


The position of the Labour leadership has hardened up, as the campaign has progressed. Ed Miliband made his opposition clear at a public event in Birmingham, and at a recent meeting with the GS and DGS(P). Chuka Umunna, at the same meeting, endorsed opposition without any qualification of “full” privatisation. At the National Policy Forum (NPF) on June 22nd, when questioned by the GS, Ed Miliband reaffirmed Labour’s opposition, and said that CWU members should be told this.

The Labour Shadow BIS Secretary also spoke at our lobby on 2nd July and again confirmed the Labour Party’s direct opposition to Royal Mail Group privatisation.

The actual policy that Labour will adopt for the General Election in 2015 is subject to a lengthy policy process. The crucial stage of this process – the “Warwick” meeting of the NPF – will be in late summer 2014, as negotiations around the General Election manifesto come to a head. The CWU will co-ordinate with other unions in TULO to maximise our position.

The priority at Labour Party Conference 2013 will be a well organised fringe meeting to highlight the campaign against privatisation. This will take place on the evening of Sunday 22nd September.

Before Labour’s 2013 Conference, we aim to get the campaign on the national Party “grid”. This means that the Party adopts the campaign as a national priority for a specific period. Our aim will be to get a day of action involving all the Constituency Labour Parties engaging in joint activity with local CWU Branches.

RECOMMENDATION 5: That we continue to build momentum on the Save our Royal Mail Campaign along the policy lines stated.