Tory MP launches bid to spare posties with low-level letterboxes ban
2 min read
A Tory MP is calling for a ban on low-level letterboxes to try and stop long-suffering posties from getting injured on the job.
Backbencher Vicky Ford has proposed a bill which would clamp down on property developers and compel them to make sure letterboxes in new buildings are "positioned above a certain height".
It follows years of campaigning from posties' unions to try and stop workers suffering dog bites, back injuries and trapped fingers.
She told MPs: "The purpose of the bill is to improve the health and safety of workers, particularly postmen and women, paperboys and girls and other deliverers.
"I met the Communication Workers' Union. They told me the key issue for their members - and it's not Brexit. It is low-level letterboxes and dangerous dogs.
"Now I am not asking homeowners to retrospectively change their existing letterboxes or replace their front doors. When it comes to front doors, Mr Speaker, a lot of people are very fond of their knockers.
"This bill simply wants to stop developers from building swathes of homes each with a letterbox placed near the ground. And I hope that this will be a moment of unity in British politics."
The bid from the Chelmsford MP came in a Ten Minute Rule Motion sandwiched between the first Prime Minister's Questions since Theresa May's historic Brexit deal defeat and a vote of no-confidence in the embattled Tory leader.
The CWU, which represents postmen and women, has long campaigned for an end to houses having their postboxes close to the ground.
It argues that a ban would cut the chance of "possible injuries such as dog bites, fingers being trapped or back strain caused when bending excessively to reach ground level boxes".
Ms Ford said back injuries were "the primary cause of sickness in the Royal Mail", with the "very act of having to bend or stoop to deliver mail" making the problem worse as posties grapple with a surge in online deliveries from firms like Amazon.
The bill will now get its first Commons reading on a date to be fixed after no other MPs spoke out against it in the chamber.
It already has the support of fellow Conservatives Scott Mann, Pauline Latham, Victoria Prentis, Bob Blackman, Tom Tugendhat, Craig Tracey, Ed Vaizey, Richard Benyon, Tim Loughton, Maria Caulfield and Kelvin Hopkins.
Ms Ford said: "I have been overwhelmed with support from members across the House.
"And you know what? We all do need to declare a bit of an interest. We politicians have been known to deliver an occasional leaflet ourselves."
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