Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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7. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the steps being taken to support the maintenance of the post office network; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51555/13]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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Post office network income is based on each transaction it processes on behalf of a client or customer. As the Minister is aware, the Minister for Social Protection intends to transfer social welfare payments to electronic format in 2014. If An Post fails to get that contract, it will have a devastating impact on its network.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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It is Government policy that An Post should remain a strong and viable company, as the Deputy would wish, in a position to provide a high-quality nationwide postal service and to maintain a nationwide customer-focused network of post offices in the community. Operational matters and the role of developing commercial strategies for the post office network are, of course, a matter for the management and board of An Post and one in which I have no statutory function. As shareholder, however, I have a strong concern and hopefully some influence regarding the ongoing commercial position of the company and I regularly liaise with it in this regard. The post office network has many strengths and has the largest retail presence in the country. I have been supportive of its attempts to diversify its income streams and to win a wider range of commercial contracts offering higher margins.

I have welcomed the selection of An Post as the provider of over-the-counter cash services for social welfare customers. The social welfare contract is the largest contract held by the post office division of An Post. As Deputy Naughten noted, the Department of Social Protection intends to implement a strategy whereby the bulk of social welfare payments will be made electronically. I understand the post office network will pitch strongly for the social welfare e-payment business when it is put out to tender by the Department of Social Protection. Having invested in the computerisation of all post offices, the post office network is well positioned to become the front office provider of choice for Government and the financial services sector. Progress towards diversification within the financial services sector is already under way, with the enhanced arrangement with AIB and the agreement with Aviva for the transfer of its branch offices' personal insurance business to One Direct.

In the context of the public sector transformation agenda, I will continue to engage with my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform on the consideration, as appropriate, of the post office network for transactional elements of the business of Departments and Government agencies, and I have stressed to my Government colleagues that the network is ideally configured for over-the-counter transactions. Any such developments would, of course, need to be subject to public procurement requirements as appropriate.

Overall, I envisage a strong future for the network through the use of its existing strengths to remain a significant player as a front office for Government services. In this regard, the post office network has secured over-the-counter local property tax payments. In addition, Garda fixed charges, television licences and passports can all be paid or purchased at the post office, as well as dog licences and toll fees. I also envisage a strong role for the post office network in the next phase of the standard bank account project, as the target segment for this project is already comfortable in using post offices for financial transactions.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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I thank the Minister for his response. As he is aware, all agencies right across the Government are pushing for online services, the best example of which is the medical card system, which has been centralised in Finglas. The difficulty is that while the Government attempts to centralise everything and put everything online, the penny then drops. The Minister should clarify whether he is aware that the Health Service Executive, HSE, recently informed Members that the centralised system does not work and it now intends to establish a nationwide network of offices to provide face-to-face contact. At that stage, did the Minister make a suggestion to the HSE about using the post office network to provide such face-to-face contact? Postmasters nationwide possess a unique skill set and can do such work.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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The honest answer to that question is that I did not, but it sounds like an idea that is worth examining. In that case I did not do what the Deputy suggested, but I have made several suggestions because the post office network has a unique retail infrastructure. I understand there are still 1,144 offices of one kind or another nationwide, which is in itself immensely valuable. However, while the point about the HSE raised by Deputy Naughten had not occurred to me, it strikes me as being worth examining. The business to which he referred from the Department of Social Protection last year was worth approximately €59 million to An Post and, consequently, is highly significant. Deputy Naughten must accept that I cannot simply decree that An Post will be the front office for Government services nationwide. I have obligations in respect of competition law, State aid and all the rest but, subject to normal procurement and so on, there is a great deal more that An Post can do as a front-of-house service for Government services.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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I accept that there are difficulties in respect of tendering, but where there is a will there is a way. With regard to SUSI, instead of centralising the scanning of documents in a building in Cork - where those involved decided to scan one side of the page only and forgot to scan the other side, leading to chaos last year - would it not have made far more sense to have asked people to scan such documentation at their local post office and e-mail it from there to SUSI?

I have two further questions for the Minister. First, has exploration taken place with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine regarding the online submission of single farm payment application forms or the cattle movement system? Second, rather than always looking internally, has An Post explored the possibility of becoming the lead agency for electronic invoicing to create additional income and perhaps a capability within the organisation that would bring new, alternative business into the network system?

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I do not know SUSI like Deputy Naughten knows SUSI.

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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Sadly, I do.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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The Minister should sing it.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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I understand the initial difficulties were subsequently corrected. I will not be dragged into discussing particular services that An Post might provide, because there are constraints on me. However, as I stated to Deputy Naughten - and the management of An Post agrees - there appear to be possibilities with regard to the use of existing infrastructure, especially in cases in which, for example, financial institutions are withdrawing from contact with the public. I am quite happy behind closed doors to take up the points Deputy Naughten has made with regard to the HSE and agriculture. I understand An Post has views in respect of the latter but am not aware of whether the HSE was ever discussed with An Post.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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May I raise Question No. 98 in this context?

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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I am sorry, but the Minister did not take the two questions together.