Humfrey Malins

Conservative Party | Woking

Humfrey Malins MP fights for the Oriental Road Post Office

On Monday 10th March, on the final day of public consultation, Humfrey Malins MP presented the Post Office Ltd with a petition of over 2,000 thousand signatures supporting the Oriental Road Post Office in Woking.  After having met this week with Mr Sood, the sub Post-Master of Oriental Road Post Office, Humfrey presented the petition to Michele Graves, an Executive Manager at Post Office House, London in an attempt to help save the branch which is threatened with closure. 

4 Years ago Mr Sood, after instruction from the Post Office Ltd, modernised the branch, spending thousands of pounds to do so; refurbishing the whole shop and providing a new counter.  Mr Sood was led to believe by the Post Office Ltd that the future of the branch was secure.  Yet just 4 years later, they are being threatened with likely closure.  The branch is a valued local amenity, providing services 7 days a week, before Post Office opening hours and after closing hours.  The Soods recently signed a new 20 year lease on the property, having been reassured that their future with the Post Office was not under threat. 

Humfrey said `it is wrong that the Post Office Ltd made assurances to Mr Sood in the past, encouraged him to invest many thousands of pounds in the business, sign a new lease, and are now trying to close the branch.  This sort of behaviour is unacceptable.  It is also a terrible turn of events for local people, who rely on the Oriental Road branch for Post Office services.  Mr Sood has been a reliable and dedicated sub-post master for many years and to lose this service to the community in this way is a great shame.  I will be demanding explanations, answers and reassurances from the Post Office Ltd to ensure that everything is done to save the branch.  The fact that so many Woking residents have signed the petition to keep the branch from closing goes to show the strength of feeling surrounding this local family run business. The Woking community relies on the hard work of residents such as Mr Sood to allow Woking to flourish and I will do everything within my power to try to save the Oriental Road Post Office and to ensure that Mr Sood’s dedication is recognised and appreciated`.