John Leech MP Strives to Protect Post Office Branches as Labour MPs Back Closure Plans

12.00.00am GMT Fri 21st Mar 2008

John Leech MP, Cllr Paul Ankers and Lianne Williams are campaigning hard to halt the tide of Post Office closures

John Leech, Liberal Democrat MP for Manchester Withington, has hit out at Government plans to close a further 2,500 Post Offices by the end of the year.

Opposition MPs tried to stop the closure programme by proposing a motion in the House of Commons demanding that the Government halt their plans to make 2,500 - one in five - branches shut up shop.

The Opposition Day motion (proposed by the Conservatives) "calls upon the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform to instruct Post Office Limited to suspend the compulsory closure of sub-post offices while these issues are re-assessed." In stark contrast to Greater Manchester's Labour MPs, John Leech MP joined the Conservatives in voting in favour of the motion.

Speaking after the vote, John Leech MP said:

"Once again, Manchester's four Labour MPs have failed to stand up for local people. It is shameful that they are backing the Government's devastating closure programme."

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