The Postal Services Commission, known as Postcomm, was a

non-ministerial department Non-ministerial government departments (NMGDs) are a type of department of the United Kingdom government that deal with matters for which direct political oversight has been judged unnecessary or inappropriate. They are headed by senior civil se ...

of the

Government of the United Kingdom ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

charged with overseeing the quality and

universal service Universal service is an economic, legal and business term used mostly in regulated industries, referring to the practice of providing a baseline level of services to every resident of a country. An example of this concept is found in the US Telec ...

of post in the United Kingdom. It was established in 2000 under the

Postal Services Act 2000 The Postal Services Act 2000 (c.26) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, relating to the postal industry. It established an industry regulator, Postcomm (s.1), a consumer watchdog, Postwatch (s.2), required a "universal service" o ...

. Postcomm was merged into the communications regulator Ofcom on 1 October 2011. Most of Postcomm's role involved regulating Royal Mail (for letter delivery and to guarantee a universal postal service) and its two subsidiaries,

Post Office Ltd gd, Oifis a' Phuist kw, Sodhva an Post ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Post Office Logo.svg , type = State-owned private company limited by shares , genre = , predecessor = General Post Office , foundation = 1987 , founder = , location_cit ...

and

Parcelforce Parcelforce Worldwide is a courier and logistics service in the United Kingdom. Parcelforce Worldwide is a trading name of the Royal Mail and is organised within the UK Parcels, International and Letters division of the group. The company del ...

. Postcomm was also charged with the licensing of the UK's postal operators. It was set up alongside a 'sister' organisation,

Postwatch The New National Consumer Council, operating as Consumer Futures, was a non-departmental public body and statutory consumer organisation in England, Wales, Scotland, and, for postal services, Northern Ireland. It was established by the Consumers, ...

, an independent watchdog for postal services. Postwatch became part of

Consumer Focus The New National Consumer Council, operating as Consumer Futures, was a non-departmental public body and statutory consumer organisation in England, Wales, Scotland, and, for postal services, Northern Ireland. It was established by the Consumers, ...

on 1 October 2008. In May 2008, Postcomm called for the part-privatisation of Royal Mail to safeguard the universal service. Following the Hooper Report into the future of the postal services industry, in October 2010, Business Secretary

Vince Cable Sir John Vincent Cable (born 9 May 1943) is a British politician who was Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2017 to 2019. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Twickenham from 1997 to 2015 and from 2017 to 2019. He also served in the Cabinet as ...

confirmed plans for the privatisation of up to 90% of the business and the possible mutualisation of the

Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...

. Any purchasing business will be required to retain the universal service of collection and delivery of mail six days a week at affordable prices. Royal Mail staff are to be offered the remaining 10% shares with the Government to take on the group's pension liabilities. The changes were enabled by the

Postal Services Act 2011 The Postal Services Act 2011 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act enabled the British Government to sell shares in Royal Mail to private investors and includes the possible mutualisation of the Post Office. The Act allows ...

. As part of the plans, the roles fulfilled by Postcomm were absorbed into the communications regulator Ofcom from 1 October 2011.

Statutory basis

The authority for Postcomm was found in the

, s.1 and Sch.1.

References

External links

Postcomm website
{{Authority control Defunct departments of the Government of the United Kingdom Postal system of the United Kingdom 2000 establishments in the United Kingdom 2011 disestablishments in the United Kingdom