Senator calls for Ballycroy Post Office to be saved

‘RESOUNDING MESSAGE’  Senator Rose Conway-Walsh.

Anton McNulty

Ballycroy residents may have to travel up to 15km to their nearest post office if the current post office closes due to a change to the current postmistresses contract.
A large crowd attended a public meeting in the Erris village last Monday evening which was called amidst fears that the post office faces closure in the near future. The meeting heard that payments to the current postmistress were cut in July and that she was confined to the old contract, which rendered the situation untenable.
Sinn Féin Senator Rose Conway-Walsh, who attended the meeting, said the resounding message from the meeting held in the local community hall was that Ballycroy will fight to keep its post office.
The Ballycroy native said it was unthinkable that the parish would be without a post office and gave her support to appealing the decision by An Post.
“I am delighted to see the hundreds of people gathered here tonight unified in demanding that the contract for Post Office services in Ballycroy be put out to contract under the terms and conditions of the new contract which would make it sustainable,” she told the public meeting.  “It is grossly unfair that payments to the current postmistress were cut in July and that she was confined to the old contract. I am fully supportive and with play an active part in submitting the appeal to An Post and executing the plan of action. 

Criteria
“I firmly believe that Ballycroy fulfils the criteria in three key areas: the nearest post office must be less that 15km away from households. Mulranny or Bangor is more than 15km away from many households in Ballycroy. The permanent population of Ballycroy is 600 plus the numerous visitors returning to the parish and those visiting the National Park. For the wider community the post office is central to the life of the parish and people depend on it.”
Senator Conway-Walsh added that some households in Ballycroy do not have transport and cannot afford to get taxis to Bangor or Mulranny to do essential post office transactions. She called on Minister Michael Ring to ensure that those who made the decision regarding the post office to ‘see sense’.
“Ballycroy has been savaged by emigration, a lack of employment opportunities and even a school bus service  over the years. A viable post office and reliable broadband is the least they deserve,” she concluded.