John Pilger´s comment piece in support of the strike illuminates some interesting statistics about the efficiency and profitability of the postal service.

In the much of the mainstream press there has been a notable failure to make clear the link between the vast amounts of taxpayers money used to prop up the structurally unsound financial sector and this kind of attack on public services, carried out in the name of reducing public debt and avoiding inflationary pressures. Whether this is a deliberate omission or simply a blind acceptance of the government´s rationale we can only conjecture; what is sure is that the´modernisation´ of many other areas in the public sector – in particular transport and privately financed hospitals and schools – has caused a decrease in the quality and availability of services.

In addition to his two previous disgraces which forced his departure from government, Mandelson has no democratic mandate and therefore no political legitimacy to force through these measures. Once again we see a Labour politician making the Conservative Party´s job a lot easier when they get in power next year.