The future of our post offices

October 18th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

I’ve been interested in post offices since 1978 when I became Research Officer at the Post Office Engineering Union (POEU) which later became the National Communications Union (NCU) and is now the Communication Workers Union (CWU). I spent 24 years as a trade union official before taking early retirement.

This week, I chaired the Post Offices Advisory Group (POAG) of Consumer Futures which is now part of Citizens Advice. This is something which I have done for six years now, dating back to when I was on the board of the then Consumer Focus (before that I was on the board of Postwatch, which was merged into Consumer Focus, when I attended the predecessor body to POAG).

At its post-war peak, the size of the post office network was around 24,000, but today it is down to about 11,500 and the Government has committed to maintain the network at this number of outlets. I can remember when Post Office Limited (POL) proudly claimed that there were 28 million customer visits a week but that figure is now down to about 17 million a week.

So the network is currently undergoing its third major change programme in a decade. Urban Reinvention involved the closure of nearly 2,500 post offices and the Network Change Programme required another 2,500 closures with around 500 new outreach locations. The current project is called the Network Transformation Programme and, while the size of the network should stay the same, every office will be modernised, redesignated or relocated.

Outside the 370 or so Crown offices (owned and staffed by POL itself), the network will consist of three models: main offices (open plan section in another retail operation), local offices (till in another retail operation) and community offices including outreaches (effectively the last shop in the community).

The Network Transformation Programme has so far involved just over 3,200 physical changes and the whole programme is due to be completed by 2018.

So, if you value your local post office, use it.

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An account of my trip to Malta

October 17th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Last weekend, I made a short visit to Malta with my sister Silvia. Although at the time I posted daily reports on the trip, I have now stitched these daily reports into a single narrative and added links and photos. You can check out the account here.

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Today is Blog Action Day 2014 #BAD2014 and this year’s theme is inequality #Inequality

October 16th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Today is Blog Action Day when bloggers around the world post items on the same theme and this year the chosen subject is inequality. Conveniently this week Credit Suisse has published its annual Global Wealth Report.

Among the mass of data, the report tells us that, taken together, the bottom half of the global population own less than 1% of total wealth. In sharp contrast, the richest decile hold 87% of the world’s wealth and the top percentile alone account for 48.2% of global assets.

The report, which calculates that total global wealth has grown to a new record – $263tn, more than twice the $117tn calculated for 2000 – found that the UK was the only country in the G7 to have recorded rising inequality in the 21st century.

Why does inequality matter? Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett explained this really well in their seminal 2009 work “The Spirit Level” which I have reviewed here.

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How democratic is the United States when a tide of dark money is swamping the electoral process?

October 14th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

“More than half of the general election advertising aired by outside groups in the battle for control of Congress has come from organizations that disclose little or nothing about their donors, a flood of secret money that is now at the center of a debate over the line between free speech and corruption.

The advertising, which has overwhelmingly benefited Republican candidates, is largely paid for by nonprofit groups and trade associations, some of which are established with the purpose of shielding wealthy individuals and corporations that contribute.”

You can read more in a “New York Times” article and view a a three and half minute video here.

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Visit to Malta (4): more Valletta

October 13th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Sunday – the hottest day yet – was utterly different from Friday and Saturday because it was a totally free day with nothing organised by Voyages Jules Verne. Roger & Silvia were soon reminded of the downside of a day alone in an unfamiliar location.

Having so enjoyed the visit to Casa Bernard in Rabat, we were keen to visit another 16th century palazzo – Casa Rocca Piccola in Valletta – only to find that it was not open on a Sunday. So we walked all the way down Republic Street to locate the War Museum, which includes one of the three Gloster Gladiator aircraft that successfully defended the island against the Italians in 1940, but discovered that a few weeks ago it closed permanently, preparatory to being relocated. So we just spent the day strolling, talking, shopping, drinking and eating.

Roger had arranged that we would meet in the evening with a Czech doctor whom he first knew 25 years ago as a young child. Silvia had met him a couple of times over the years. Today Vojta is 32 and married with a family. His passion is sailing and he was in Malta to prepare for participation in next week’s Rolex Middle Sea race around the island of Sicily. He came round to our hotel from the boat that he will be sailing with a Czech crew and, after a drink and chat, we strolled down to Republic Street. Outside McDonald’s the place was heaving with Maltese youth; clearly this is what counts for excitement in downtown Valletta on a Sunday evening. We had dinner at a place called “Ranieri” where we all ate silver bream fish cooked in foil before moving on to tasty ice creams and limoncello liqueur.

Roger & Silvia returned home on Monday and we were collected for the drive to the airport at 11.45 am. We were determined to use the short morning to see one more place and so at 10 am we were at the 16th century palazzo Casa Rocca Piccola for the first tour of the day. The building is now the home of the ninth Marquis & Marchioness de Piro and he made an appearance in the courtyard with his colourful parrot Vulcan before we were shown round by a very pretty and knowledgeable masters student in the history of art. All the rooms are adorned with antique furniture, china & silver, and objects d’art and there are lots of paintings. It was a fitting end to a short holiday centred around a long history.

A few weeks before our visit. Malta celebrated 50 years of independence from Britain. However, the British have been welcome in Malta ever since they were invited to throw out Napoleon’s French troops over 200 years ago and in turn the British love Malta because everyone speaks English and the weather is so much better that at home.

The more we saw of Malta though, the more we realised that this tiny nation has an incredibly long history – around 7,000 years. So it is no wonder that it attracts so many (mainly European) tourists, especially now that formerly attractive locations in North Africa and the Middle East are no longer suitable for tourists and that so many cruise ships are ploughing the Mediterranean.

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Visit to Malta (3): outside Valletta

October 11th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Saturday was another brilliant day weather-wise and equally successful from a sightseeing point of view. The whole day was occupied by a tour of locations outside Valletta with the same guide Audrey-Marie Bartolo using a minivan for the eight British tourists.

First we drove to the town of Mosta (population 19,000) to see the Parish Church of Santa Maria which is better known as the Mosta Dome. This was built between 1833-1860 using funds raised by the local people. Its most notable feature is the great dome which rises externally to 61 metres and is one of the largest unsupported domes in the world. Audrey-Marie told us the story of ‘The miracle of Mosta’. This occurred on 9 June 1942 when 300 parishioners were waiting to hear Mass and Italian aircraft dropped three bombs over the dome. Two bounced off and landed in the square without exploding, while one pierced the dome, smashed off a wall, and rolled across the floor, failing to detonate. A replica of the bomb is on display in the church sacristy.

We had a short break in Mosta and Roger & Silvia had cappuccino with a Welsh couple called Tony & Non. We then drove to the town of Rabat (population 11,400) where we toured Casa Bernard, a gorgeous 16th century home of a Maltese noble family of French origin. These days it is still privately owned by a wealthy Maltese couple who often take tourists round themselves. Today they were away, so a neighbour showed us round and she displayed immense knowledge of, and affection for, the house and its contents of paintings, furniture, silver and china, and various objects d’art.

Next door to Rabat is the walled citadel of Mdina (population now a mere 240). This was fortified as long ago as 1000 BC by the Phoenicians and in medieval times it was effectively the capital, but today it is known as the Silent City because of its peaceful, shady streets and few inhabitants. We saw St Paul’s Cathedral which was built between 1697-1702, making it the first cathedral in Malta so that the one in Valletta is called the Co-cathedral.

Again we had a break and this time Roger & Silvia ate a Greek salad in the company of a British couple called Rex & Sally. Before leaving Mdina, we were taken round a 17th century Carmelite Priory, the only one in Malta open to the public. The highlight of the Baroque building is the beautifully-decorated refectory. It is clear that Malta remains a deeply Roman Catholic country and that there is no problem finding new priests, monks and nuns.

Our final destination was a place called Paula which is home to one of Malta’s most important prehistoric sites. The Hal Saflieni Hypogeum is a subterranean necropolis which is thought to date back to somewhere between 3600-3000 BC and was only discovered by accident in 1902. Over three levels, halls, chambers and passages have been hewn out of the limestone rock and then an estimated 7,000 bodies were interred there. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage site that is carefully protected: only ten visitors are allowed at a time (we were four British and six French) and carbon dioxide is removed from the air. We know so little about the people who created this huge underground structure or about the culture that led to so many bodies being stored where so few could see them, but it was an awesome experience to share the same space for a while.

We were dropped off back at our hotel shortly after 4 pm to complete seven fascinating hours exploring more faces of Malta.

After the experience of last night, this evening Roger & Silvia decided to move up-market for dinner and found a place nearby called “Trattoria Campanella” which worked out really well. Silvia had a main course of king prawns, while Roger went for a port dish. After dessert plus wine and coffee, we decided to try out a local liqueur and we were recommended something called ‘bajtra’ which we were advised was made from prickly pears – it was pink, sweet and delicious.

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Visit to Malta (2): Valletta

October 10th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

On a Thursday afternoon, our flight from London Gatwick to Malta’s Luqa Airport on a British Airways Airbus A319 took 2 hours 50 minutes. We are staying at the Hotel Osborne which is conveniently located inside the oldest part of the capital Valletta. It was towards 10 pm when we reached the hotel but we still went out for a quick orientation and refreshment walk of an hour and a half. On the main pedestrianised thoroughfare of Republic Street, we found a little restaurant where Silvia had a large glass of red wine and Roger gorged himself on the sweetest cake he had ever come across, a Sicilian delicacy called cassatella.

Friday morning was a walking tour of Valletta with an excellent guide named Audrey-Marie Bartolo (there were only six of us in the group). Even the guide book describes Valletta was “Malta’s Lilliputian capital” since it measures a mere 600 metres by 1000 metres which, of course, makes it eminently walkable.

Starting at 9 am, our first stop was – logically enough – the National Museum of Archaeology. Here it was explained to us that Maltese history starts almost seven millennia ago with the arrival on the island of the first inhabitants (probably from Sicily) in 5200 BC. The Ggantija Temples date back to 3600 BC which makes them the oldest free-standing buildings in the world (for comparison, Stonehenge in England dates from 2600 BC). The most outstanding exhibit in this fascinating museum is the so-called ‘Sleeping Lady’, a red terracotta carving of great detail that goes back to 3200 BC.

Next stop was St John’s Co-cathedral which our guide insisted was “one of the most beautiful churches in the world”. It was built between 1573-1578 by the Order of the Knights of St John who ruled Malta from 1530-1798 and the ‘co’ in the title stands for ‘continuation’ since it was actually the second cathedral to be built on the island. As well as an imposing central altar, there are eight elaborately-decorated chapels – four on each side. The pride of the cathedral is found in the Oratory: two huge paintings by Caravaggio – ‘The beheading of John the Baptist’ and ‘Saint Jerome writing’.

After a half-hour refreshment break in Piazza Regina, the tour continue with a visit to the 16th century Grand Master’s Palace, historically the home of the leader of the Order of the Knights of Malta (there were 28 in all, most of them French). We viewed the Tapestry Room, the Dining Room, the Grand Council Chamber and other ornate rooms. Currently the Maltese Parliament of 69 members meets in the Grand Master’s Palace but a new parliament building of controversial design is close to being completed. Finally we were taken to the Upper Barrakka Gardens, originally created in the late 16th century, for splendid views if the Grand Harbour of Valletta. The weather was hot and there was not a cloud in the azure sky, so it all looked magnificent. Our guide left us at 12.40 pm.

In fact, as we enjoyed our tour with Audrey-Marie, we learned a bit about her. She is actually from the island of Gozo where around 30,000 of Malta’s 410,000 citizens live. Surprisingly people of Gozo speak a version of Malti which is hardly intelligible to other Maltese. Audrey-Marie has been an extra in a number of Hollywood movies shot locally including “World War Z” and she showed us a group photograph of her with the film’s lead actor Brad Pitt (in fact, Pitt and Angelina Jolie are in Gozo now filming their latest movie).

We had the afternoon free and Roger & Silvia started with a salad lunch on Merchants Street. Then we walked down to something called “The Malta Experience”. This is an audio-visual show accessible in no less than 13 languages which takes just 40 minutes to cover the 7,000 years of Maltese history. It was very informative, but Roger was disappointed that it did not find time to mention the Norman King Roger who arrived in Malta in 1127.

After the “Experience”, we had a tour of the Holy Infirmary with a guide called Anna Giusti. This hospital, run by the Order of St John, admitted its first patients in 1574 and the main ward, which is 155 metres long, could accommodate up to 330 beds. It was remarkably modern for its time – disinfected instruments, rapid amputations, toilets in the wards – and the survival rate of patients was 72%. One of the illnesses treated was syphilis for which the sufferer was administered mercury which cured the illness but paralysed the patient. As Ann put it: “One night with Venus and a lifetime with Mercury”.

Anna – like Audrey-Marie – was immensely proud of her country’s history. She told us: “Geographically speaking, Malta is at the very edge of Europe. Historically, it is at the centre.”

In the evening, Roger & Silvia went out for dinner and chose a restaurant called the “King’s Own Band Club” located on the main thoroughfare of the city, Republic Street, but it turned out to be less than a total success. Silvia ordered spaghetti alle vongole (clams) and, as the young waiter was about to place it in front of her, he managed to tip the plate so that hot oil split over her top and jeans. Roger chose Malta’s favourite national dish which is ‘fenek’ (rabbit), but it was very boney, the salad came a quarter of an hour after the meat, and the chips came a quarter of an hour after the salad. When we found that we could not pay the bill by credit card, our exasperation finally burst through and the waiter gave us complimentary drinks of limoncello.

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Visit to Malta (1): introduction

October 9th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Since 2006, my sister Silvia (two years younger) and I have established an annual tradition of taking a short holiday together without our spouses. For our eighth such venture, we have chosen the island of Malta – somewhere neither of us has been before (for me, this is my 66th country). It is a short, organised tour with Voyages Jules Verne.

The strategic location of the seven islands in the middle of the Mediterranean means that Malta has been invaded over and over again throughout its history. The Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Moorish, Normans, Sicilians, Habsburg Spain, Knights of St. John, French and the British (for almost two centuries), have all successively ruled the islands.

Malta gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1964. Today It is a nation of just 410,000, the smallest state in the European Union, which it joined in 2004, and one of the smallest and most densely populated countries in the world. The native language is called Malti and most linguists consider this to be related to the Arabic dialects of western North Africa.

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The Taiwanese vegetable seller turned philanthropist

October 8th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Meet Chen Shu-chu, the 63-year-old vegetable vendor who has quietly donated over 10 million Taiwanese dollars ($350,000; £210,000) to her hometown.
No matter how much money she makes, she spends no more than a few dollars a day on herself so that she can give away the rest. Her generosity has made many people wonder how someone who earns such a modest living selling vegetables, could give away so much.

The BBC’s Cindy Sui went to Taitung find out – see the two and a half minute film here.

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Not the day I planned with my granddaughter Catrin, but still lots of fun

October 7th, 2014 by Roger Darlington

Following an earlier exploratory visit to Legoland with my granddaughter Catrin, I wanted to take her again before the weather became too Autumnal. So I arranged with her parents that I would take her today.

Vee said days ago that this would not work out because a period of rainy weather was forecast. In fact, the last few days have been wet and miserable but today has been dry and bright.

All looked well, therefore, for a trip to Legoland today – except that Catrin staged s protest (I think she’s been watching the news from Hong Kong) and she was adamant that she didn’t want to go to Legoland today

I had decided that, since the weather was so uncertain, I needed to have a Plan B – and this was the basis of our rapidly revised schedue.

So, instead of Legoland in Windsor, we visited an exhbition of Lego sculptures in central London. It is called ‘The Art Of The Brick’ and it comprises over 85 remarkable art sculptures created from more than a million Lego bricks. The artist is the Americam Nathan Sawaya.

At the end of the exhibition is a play area with tables and a pit full of Lego pieces and Catrin spent almost as long in the pit as she did in the exhibition.

The second visit was to Hamleys in Regent Street. This claims to be the oldest toy shop in the world (it was founded in 1760) and it must be one of the biggest – it extends over seven floors and has over 50,000 toys for sale.

It was Catrin’s first visit and, from her wide eyes, you’d think she had entered Aladdin’s Cave. She explored every floor before choosing the one toy I had promised to buy her.

Her Canadian grandparents bought her some Disney Magic Clip dolls and dresses which she absolutely adores and she found another character and another dress in the set, so we bought Snow White and Rapunzel and their two dresses I know that this is two presents, not one, but Catrin is s tough negotiator.

Once again, she was so good and so chatty and I loved our time together.