'Anti-junk mail' postman keeps job

The rebel postman who became a populist hero when he championed the case against junk mail is to keep his job, it was announced yesterday.

Roger Annies, 45, won praise from customers and environmental campaigners when he told householders on his route how to avoid some of the 21 billion pieces of junk mail which are put through Britain's letterboxes each year.

Taking matters into his own hands the father-of-one, from Barry, south Wales, designed and circulated a leaflet highlighting Royal Mail's opt-out clause for unsolicited mail. It read: "As you will have certainly already noticed, your postman is not only delivering your mail; he/she also has to deliver some (anonymous) advertising material called door-to-door items.

"You may be interested in reducing your unwanted advertising mail and reduce paper usage in order to help save the environment.

"If you complete the slip below and send it to the Royal Mail delivery office, you should not get any of the above mentioned unwanted advertising."

But Mr Annies was suspended and faced a disciplinary hearing for his intervention.

Yesterday, however, a company spokesman said he had been reinstated.