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		Concern as Labour threatens local post office closures Wednesday, 10th October 2007 Brussels -- The social cost of closing our post offices will strike at the heart of communities across the country, East Midlands Conservative MEPs Chris Heaton-Harris and Roger Helmer said today. The British people are getting a second class treatment from a Labour Government that has shown time and time again it cannot be trusted, they said. Labour has set the Post Office a target of closing 2,500 branches by the end of next year which will affect many branches in the East Midlands region that both MEPs represent. Speaking today, Mr Heaton-Harris said: “Post Offices are the lifeblood of the community. But their future is now under real threat. These cuts will hit the vulnerable and the elderly the hardest. Labour Ministers need to recognise that if the local Post Office closes, often the last shop in the vicinity closes as well, and a van for a couple of hours a week is no replacement for a Post Office open full time”. Mr Helmer added: “This is just the tip of the iceberg and is a very worrying situation. Losing a pivotal resource like the neighbourhood post office can do enormous damage to communities, and affect the lives of older or disabled people in particular, who rely heavily on the current post office locations and may not be able to travel to another branch. “A few heads need banging together. What is going to cost more? Supporting our post offices or the social cost of closing them? This Government cannot be trusted; we have seen that over and over again”.