Was there some failure of communication, do you think, when the Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky bought Royal Mail (with the full support of government and opposition) last year? I only ask because it seems to have been taken aback by the full extent of its obligations – to deliver mail to every part of the UK and in the case of a first-class stamp, to do so, with some exceptions, by the next day.

If you increase the cost of a service sixfold and reduce the level of service, it shouldn’t be a complete surprise if the number of people using it goes down

If you increase the cost of a service sixfold and reduce the level of service, it shouldn’t be a complete surprise if the number of people using it goes down

This week we see the price of a second-class stamp go up 4p to 91p and first-class stamps increase by 10p to £1.80. I am the twit who was looking elsewhere when this was announced, and so didn’t do the obvious thing and buy a couple of books of stamps in advance. So now, like everyone else, I shall have to think hard before splurging on a first class stamp – which has more than doubled in price in the past six years, and has increased by 137 per........

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