Ed Balls talks to party members

At the invitation of former City Council Leader Simon Burgess, Labour leadership contender Ed Balls was in Hove on Saturday (4) to back postal workers.

Simon Burgess said:
"Ed Balls MP was campaigning with representatives from the CWU, Labour volunteers and local residents against threats from the Conservative and Lib Dem Government to privatise Royal Mail. Over the last two years Royal Mail has experienced a rise of 26% in profits (£321 million profit in 2009 and £404 million in 2010). The campaign against destabilising the growth of Royal Mail is a popular one, with a YouGov poll in August 2010 showing that only 15 per cent of the public agree with privatising Royal Mail while 60 per cent believe the Royal Mail should remain a wholly publicly-owned organisation."

Ed Balls said:
“On Royal Mail, the case for private ownership has simply not been made. The risks are substantial and long term – it could end up like another Railtrack. So rather than gamble with public trust, risk the universal Royal Mail service and squander the public service ethic of the workforce, the right solution now is to make a modernised Royal Mail work as a 21st century public service. That’s why, as I have toured the country over recent weeks, I have been campaigning with the CWU to Keep the Post Public.”

Further details on the Keep the Post Public campaign can be found by clicking here or visiting:www.cwu.org