An Post online campaign is ‘ironic’, hypocritical
THE Council is going to call on An Post to stop marketing online shopping from sites in the UK and USA which “seriously damages local family run businesses in our county.”
Cllr Hubert Keaney put forward a motion after he said the current campaign was “ironic”.
He said the response from An Post when people were lobbying to retain the local post offices was that customers were not giving them business.
“Yet An Post are taking advantage of their free post to encourage people to spend money in the US and the UK,” he told the meeting.
“Every single package that comes in from Amazon...there’s no VAT paid. There’s not one benefit to this county or economy. We’re losing more by spending on online shopping from outside the state and we now have the State company that’s actively involved in promoting this,” he said.
“I want the Minister to see if An Post are acting out side the Competition Laws in using free post to get their campaign into every home. The hypocracy of it” he said. When no other coun- cillors moved to support him, Cllr Keaney said he thought he’d get more support than that from “people who have been going around the county...”
Cllr Seamus Kilgannon said he would support Cllr Keaney, claiming the An Post ad campaign for Addresspal “doesn’t look good.”
“Where’s the brigade for Rural Ireland?” asked Cllr Keaney.
Cathaoirleach Cllr Martin Baker and Cllr Paul Taylor supported the motion also.
Cllr Mulvey said An Post telling people to go to the cheaper places in the UK was “very bad form.”
Cllr Keaney urged people to do “the big switch” - his campaign to get households to spend ¤20 a week in a local business.
The Cathaoirleach complimented him on the campaign.