Border Force ‘to blame’ for fake stamps

Royal Mail accuses Government of not doing enough to stop counterfeits entering the UK

ROYAL MAIL has accused Border Force of failing to prevent counterfeit stamps flooding into Britain from China.

A senior executive at the postal service suggested the Government was not doing enough to stop the import of forgeries that are resulting in customers being hit with £5 penalties.

On Wednesday, an investigation by The Telegraph revealed that four major Chinese suppliers were offering to print up to one million counterfeit Royal Mail stamps a week for as little as 4p each – and deliver them to Britain within days.

Security experts warned that the mass production of fakes was a form of “economic warfare” committed with the “tacit approval” of the Chinese Communist Party.

Customers reported a rise in letters bearing counterfeit stamps after the postal service introduced new barcoded versions. Those who are sent such letters are charged a £5 penalty to collect their post.

Royal Mail launched a review last week, but sources close to the firm said fakes printed in China were to blame rather than an internal flaw.

The revelation sparked a diplomatic row yesterday, with senior MPS calling for Chinese government officials to face ministers over the issue. The Communist nation dismissed the claims as “baseless” and said Royal Mail should investigate its own supply chains.

Yesterday, David Gold, director of external affairs and policy at Royal Mail, told The Telegraph it was Border Force’s responsibility to stop counterfeits entering the country. He said: “One of the things which is obvious is, if these stamps are coming in from abroad, people’s obvious question will be ‘Shouldn’t Border Force just be stopping them?’

“[I would ask] what the Government is doing to put pressure on law enforcement to stop these items coming into the country in the first place.”

It comes weeks after the Home Office sacked a whistleblower who raised concerns that private jets were landing at one airport with no Border Force checks.

Mr Gold suggested that some shops may be deliberately importing the fakes, but that other small retailers who are not required to buy stamps directly from Royal Mail were unwittingly buying the forgeries. He said Royal Mail had been spurred into introducing the barcoded stamps in 2022 because it was losing £19 million a year to counterfeits, which are now easier to spot.

Mr Gold said counterfeiters were part of a “losing battle” and that Royal Mail’s security team were monitoring shops where they suspect fraudulent stamps are being sold. He also said he had seen online adverts selling counterfeit stamps in recent weeks, which was often the case when Royal Mail raised its prices.

The postal service has increased the price of stamps four times in the past two years, culminating in last week’s rise to £1.35 for a first-class stamp and 85p for a second-class stamp.

MPS yesterday demanded that China was held to account for allowing fakes into the country. Alicia Kearns, chairman of the foreign affairs committee, demanded Beijing launch an investigation and crack down on factories “brazenly” producing the counterfeits.

She said: “It is incumbent upon the Chinese state to crack down on these companies who are openly supporting illicit trade in stamps, investigate printing facilities and expose those funding them.”

The Liberal Democrats called on the Chinese government to face questions from ministers and urged the Foreign Office to arrange a meeting with the Chinese ambassador.

Sarah Olney, the party’s treasury spokesman, said: “Surely a government minister has to step in to investigate.

“The Government can’t pass the buck on our postal service being undermined by fake stamps, made on the other side of the world. Ministers are missing in action on a potential scandal.”

However a spokesman for the Chinese embassy dismissed the reports, telling The Times they were “baseless” and “low-level”. He said that Royal Mail should “have a thorough investigation over the internal supply chain, instead of pursuing the attention of the media”.

A Home Office spokesman said: “We do not tolerate the sale of illegal products and Border Force will take concerted action to stop them crossing our borders.”

THE Health Secretary has demanded answers from Royal Mail over its plans to cut NHS letter deliveries.

The postal operator has been asked to explain urgently whether it has considered the impact that its proposals to reduce second-class deliveries to three days a week will have on NHS patients.

Victoria Atkins intervened less than a week after The Telegraph revealed widespread concern among NHS chiefs and patient groups about the danger to patient safety if vital medical letter deliveries were deliberately delayed.

In a letter to Martin Seindenberg, the Royal Mail chief executive, Ms Atkins warned postal communication remains “an essential mechanism” for the NHS when engaging with patients. And she asked him to explain the proposals made to regulator Ofcom to cut second-class deliveries to every other day.

A source close to the Health Secretary said: “Victoria believes that everyone should have equity in accessing healthcare. As we move to digitise the NHS, we must take people with us and the Royal Mail has a critical part to play in that.”

NHS leaders raised fears in The Telegraph last week about the risk that delayed letters were already having on patient safety. As many as 2.5 million of the eight million NHS hospital appointments missed each year are because of medical letters arriving too late, and costing the NHS around £300 million.

Analysis by think tank Healthwatch England found more than two thirds of patients are still reliant on NHS post and 3 per cent had missed an appointment because their letter arrived after it was supposed to have taken place.

The NHS is one of Royal Mail’s biggest customers, sending around 125 million letters to patients each year, at a cost of about £1 each.

The Royal Mail delivers around seven billion letters a year but the NHS remains one of its biggest customers.

The service is dealing with a slump in letter sending that has pushed its finances to the brink. A Royal Mail spokesman said: “We are working with a range of NHS bodies to explore options for time-sensitive medical letters as part of our proposals.”