Jamie Stone

It is an absolute pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Stringer. Representing the biggest and most remote mainland British constituency, I know that my constituents understand the challenges faced by Royal Mail, including inclement weather and huge distances. I want to give one example of an issue that infuriates my constituents: a pot of paint from the Scottish Borders was ordered by one of my wonderful constituents. It cost £40 to deliver it. That seems absolutely shocking for one pot of paint. I do not lay that necessarily at the door of the Royal Mail. My next example is my wife’s flowery dress. In the last months of last year, she ordered a special flowery dress for Christmas, and it was the same old story: it did not come, it did not come and it did not come. My erstwhile colleague from Holyrood, the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell), spoke of the two-year-old who did not really mind a delay; I promise him that my better half minded the delay hugely. I have experienced at first hand the irritation that constituents feel at the standard of delivery. Of course, in the end, it never came. I was instructed to go out in the snowy weather and check all the neighbours’ garden sheds. If an MP knocks on the door and asks, “May I look in your garden shed?” they get a very interesting reply. Then we had to wait for the refund, which did eventually come. I see it as a punishment for my constituents simply because of their postcode. It makes life very difficult for them. For those trying to run a small business, it is a real old slap in the face. Royal Mail is going green. We understand the necessity for that—net zero and so on—but now it is not going to take the mail up to the highlands by aeroplane. It is going to take the mail in a diesel lorry on a very long journey on the A9. Anyone who has seen 007 go up the A9 in “Skyfall” knows what a long way that is. Is it really green to use all that diesel going up the road? I do not know. I ask for that to be passed on. Can we please think again? Finally, I am so glad that other Members have given the posties praise. They are wonderful people. I will end on a light note, as the last Back Bencher to speak in this debate. Some years ago, a letter was sent from a religious organisation in the United States. It simply said on the big envelope: “To the personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ, Highlands, Scotland.” Someone in the Royal Mail wrote on it: “Try Jamie Stone.” I wish I had kept it. On that light note, I hope word will be passed back to our posties that they do a smashing job, and I thank them.