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Jim Broadbent and Jay Chauhan at the post office in Belsize
Lane |
'Give us
a new post office', demands Jim
Actor joins campaign to force
the Post Office to set up a new branch
AWARD-WINNING actor Jim Broadbent has joined the campaign
to force the Post Office to honour their pledge to set up a
new branch in Belsize Park.
The actor, known for his roles in the smash hit musical Moulin
Rouge and Bridget Jones’s Diary, has visited Jay Chauhan’s
sub-post office in Belsize Lane three times a week for six years.
But Mr Chauhan is set to be made redundant in three weeks time
when his branch, which has been due to close for two years,
finally shuts its doors for the last time.
After a campaign by users, backed by MP Glenda Jackson, the
Post Office agreed to keep the shop open until a replacement
could be found.
But now customers have seen the post office back down on its
pledge to find a replacement site before closing the counters
in Mr Chauhan’s shop.
Mr Broadbent said: “It is awful to see it go. It is a service
we need. I wrote to the government to ask them to look into
the specifics of each closure and base all decisions on how
cost effective it is. The closure is impractical round here,
and the nearest other one is Hampstead – which is far too
far for people to go.”
A Post Office spokesman admitted that the announcement this
week that Mr Chauhan’s store on Belsize Lane will close
in March without an alternative opening means the Belsize area
will be without a counter for the foreseeable future.
The spokesman added they were discussing possibilities “with
interested parties” but refused to say where they may be.
The post office has been a feature on the busy shopping parade
for 35 years – with Mr Chauhan at the helm for the past
25 years.
Mr Chauhan added: “I shall be sad to go – my customers
have been like a family to me.”
The closure was part of a nationwide programme to close 2,500
offices started two years ago, and Mr Chauhan was made redundant.
Helen Cordell, the chairwoman of the Belsize Residents Association,
said the Post Office had to honour to pledge to find another
suitable place for a sub-post office in the area. She said:
“It is important for the Post Office to find new premises.”
A Post Office spokesperson said: “We are committed to opening
one in Belsize Park and there has been some interest, but we
don’t want to raise expectations at this moment until any
deal has been looked at more closely. |
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