"We'll be deep in the red in four years" National Council wants to stop post office downsizing - Levrat sounds the alarm
The cutbacks at Swiss Post should be stopped, demands the National Council. Swiss Post President Christian Levrat warns of the consequences.
01.12.2024, 06:30
01.12.2024, 06:59
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- Swiss Post President Christian Levrat warns against a freeze on cutbacks at Swiss Post.
- "If we don't do anything now, we'll be deep red in four years' time," he said in an interview with the SonntagsZeitung newspaper.
- The National Councillor called for cutbacks to be suspended until the Postal Act has been revised.
In an interview, Swiss Post President Christian Levrat warned against a standstill in the realignment of Swiss Post. The National Councillor called for downsizing measures to be suspended until the Postal Act has been revised.
Levrat described this delay as a threat to the existence of Swiss Post. "If we do nothing now, we will be deep in the red in four years' time," he said in an interview with the SonntagsZeitung newspaper. Experience shows that revisions take four to five years. "In today's dynamic world, there is probably no company that can survive such a long hold," the former SP president continued.
Due to the decline in letter post and new customer requirements, Swiss Post urgently needs to modernize and digitize. A revision of the law is necessary, but should not stop the ongoing change. Levrat is also critical of the financing of the universal service: subsidies would jeopardize the agility of Swiss Post.
Now it's the Council of States' turn
The responsible Council of States committee does not want to freeze the further development of Swiss Post at the current level. It had requested that the motion approved by the National Council be rejected.
The National Council did not want to allow any changes to the Postal Ordinance until the Postal Act had been revised. The Council of States' Committee for Transport and Telecommunications (KVF-S) rejected this by 9 votes to 0 with 3 abstentions, as reported by the parliamentary services at the end of October. It had previously consulted Swiss Post and the Association of Swiss Mountain Regions (SAB).
Even before the political discussion on the future of the universal service, measures to increase efficiency were necessary so that Swiss Post could maintain its economic viability, the committee stated. Next up is the Council of States. It is expected to debate the issue on Thursday.
