The UK government has approved the sale of Royal Mail’s parent company to a Czech billionaire, Daniel Křetínský.
Locate2u reported in March that International Distribution Services (IDS) agreed to sell the business to Czech businessman Daniel Křetínský for $4.5 billion.
Keith Williams, non-executive chair of IDS says this marks an important milestone in the approvals process.
“The IDS Board welcomes the Government’s endorsement and legal backing for the comprehensive package of undertakings and commitments we negotiated,” says Williams.
Royal Mail not up to scratch
Royal Mail is still not out of hot water, though. The postal service has been under the UK regulatory body Ofcom’s radar for some time.
In a recent statement Ofcom announced that it has fined Royal Mail fined Royal Mail £10.5 million for failing to meet its First and Second Class delivery targets in the 2023/24 financial year.
Between April 2023 and March 2024, the postal service delivered 74.7% of First Class mail and 92.7% of Second Class mail on time. The company attributed the delays to financial challenges and a delayed agreement following the previous year’s industrial action.
“We have therefore decided that the company breached its obligations by failing to provide an acceptable level of service without justification. Royal Mail took insufficient and ineffective steps to try and prevent this failure, which is likely to have impacted millions of customers who did not get the service they paid for,” Ofcom says.
Ofcom outlines action for improved performance
In addition to fining the company, Ofcom emphasizes it has been pushing the postal service to improve its performance.
“At a minimum, we expect to see a clear, credible and publicly communicated plan setting out how Royal Mail will get back on track through meaningful, sustainable and continuous improvements for customers,” Ofcom says.
Ian Strawhorne, Ofcom director of enforcement, says Royal Mail’s poor service is now eroding public trust in one of the UK’s oldest institutions.
“This is the second time we’ve fined the company since the pandemic. Royal Mail has provided an improvement plan, and we’re seeing some signs of progress, but it must go further and faster to deliver the service that people expect,” says Strawhorne.
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About the author
Sharl is a qualified journalist. He has over 10 years’ experience in the media industry, including positions as an editor of a magazine and Business Editor of a daily newspaper. Sharl also has experience in logistics specifically operations, where he worked with global food aid organisations distributing food into Africa. Sharl enjoys writing business stories and human interest pieces.
