Julian Sturdy

I would like to sincerely thank all those who rallied around and supported my petition protesting against the proposed closure of Fulford Post Office.

The response to the petition, which called on Gordon Brown to halt the ongoing post office closure program and keep post offices like Fulford open, has been simply fantastic. This culminated in Fulford postmaster Aasif Rabbani and myself presenting it to 10 Downing Street on Wednesday January 16^th.

It was essential that we responded swiftly and demonstrated our strength and unity and the full extent of our outrage, anger and frustration at these closure plans. I believe the residents of Fulford and North Yorkshire have sent a strong message to Gordon Brown which shows we will not stand by and let these closures happen.

After presenting the petition to number 10 and following a couple of radio interviews we met up with Charles Hendry the Conservative Shadow minister with responsibilities for Post Offices, at this point the day had gone extremely well but sadly things were about to take a turn for the worst. We arrived at Kings Cross to catch our train back to find that a points failure just outside the station meant no trains were coming in, after standing on the platform for over three hours with hundreds of other frustrated people we final boarded a train and arrived back into York at one o’clock in the morning. However if we save Fulford Post Office it will have all been worth it.

Ellee Seymour travelled to Number 10 with us read more about the day on her blog.   

The public consultation period is drawing to a close on the proposed post office closures across North Yorkshire. Therefore I am travelling to London tomorrow to present the petition I have been running against the closure of the post office in Fulford to the Prime Minister’s office in 10 Downing Street. 

I will be accompanied by the Fulford post master Aasif Rabbani during the trip and we will deliver a clear and resounding message on behalf of the Fulford residents, that villagers need and deserve a post office to serve their needs.

Under this Government there has sadly been a gradual erosion of the sub-post office network and they are ignoring the vital social role they play in our local communities like Fulford.

I felt it was essential that we responded strongly showing the strength of public anger and frustration at these latest proposals and that is why I am taking the petition to 10 Downing Street. The support we have received for our campaign has been fantastic and I would like to thank all those people who have signed our petition.