Usually when I stand up here to say a few words I am upbeat and hoping to get a positive response. I stand here today representing County Laois. Since 2002 when the new currency came into this country 22 or 23 post offices have closed in County Laois. The Government needs to give some form of backing to the remaining post offices in our county or we will be here again in 12 months' time when more are closed. Every year more and more have closed. We need to look at the whole structure of the post office. For example, when a contract is up with the postmaster or postmistress why do the doors close? Obviously, it is because it does not pay them to keep the doors open. If it does not pay them to keep the doors open, it behoves the Government to bring in some scheme that would help address the situation. For too long I have heard the suggestions to get other payments through the post office but all of that is history now. The time for talking is over. The time to do business is now. I have seen the very same changes in the local authorities and the taxation offices. For years, people would be queuing outside the door of Laois County Council to pay car tax, especially at certain times - at the beginning of the month or whatever. It is all online now. Very few people to anything in person now. Everything is online and can be done on the phone. I have listened to all the Members who spoke and I have watched all the Ministers come and go. However, if we are serious about what we are talking about today, we will do something positive about it. That is what I ask the Minister of State to do. Do something positive about it and report back here on what is being done to keep those rural post offices, which are the last few that we have. I will not even talk about rural post offices because at this stage, it is also about urban post offices. Going forward, unless there is an intervention by the Government, we will have far fewer post offices. It is awful passing through all our villages now. When I was a young fella they were a hive of activity. Now there is no pub, no post office and no shop.

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You cannot even get a pint of milk because you cannot get it from your local farmer because it is not pasteurised. That is where we have gone to now.

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