BASILDON MP Stephen Metcalfe recently undertook a visit to Royal Mail's Basildon delivery office to discuss delivery times and the changing nature of the postal industry.

The MP for South Basildon and East Thurrock paid the unexpected visit on Friday, 12 April to discuss mail delivery times in Basildon and the surrounding area, as well as Royal Mail's historic 'Universal Service Obligation' to the public.

Mr Metcalfe talked to Jordan Ogles, Russell Clarke, and Teerath Singh Rathore about how sorting works. Using 'Walk Frames', Royal Mail workers filter the mail into different wards. Accepting that there have been challenges due to sickness leading to delays, Royal Mail says that it is now delivering to its targets.

Royal Mail says it is committed to delivering to all addresses served by Basildon Delivery Office six days a week when there is mail to deliver. If this is not possible, it will deliver to those addresses on the next working day.

With regards to the Universal Service Obligation, Royal Mail says it remains committed to the one-price-goes-anywhere service.

However, it is also advocating for changes in the years to come as the number of letters has reduced from 20 billion a year to a fraction of that number.

This is while the number of parcels has increased due to online shopping and the number of addresses has increased due to population growth.

Mr Metcalfe said: "It was very worthwhile meeting the team from Royal Mail's Basildon Delivery Office.

"We discussed recent delays, which I know are no small thing for Basildon residents.

"However, it was good to hear that this has been rectified and performance has improved dramatically."

Mr Metcalfe added: "I want to thank all our postal staff for the hard work they do, rain or shine, all year round."