Plans to overhaul Royal Mail will leave us with a second-class service

Deliveries could be cut to just three days a week and next day deliveries could be scrapped unless you pay through the nose, according to plans for reform. Given the shabby service the Royal Mail often provides, customers are entitled to ask if we aren’t already there, writes James Moore

Industry watchdog Ofcom has looked at potential changes to Royal Mail (PA)

It’s time for a “national debate” over the future of the postal service, according to watchdog Ofcom – but both main options for reform could have the nation’s posties straining under the weight of angry correspondence.

The first would involve making changes to existing products (first class, second class and business mail) so that most letters would be delivered through a service taking up to three days or more. A next-day service would still be available for “urgent” letters. But this would come at a price. Probably a fancy one.

The second would be to reduce the number of letter delivery days from six to five. Or even three. This one would be quite a bit more complicated to achieve because it would require a change to the universal service obligation and that can only be done via primary legislation.