Residents in Ballasalla are furious with a decision regarding the village post office.

Isle of Man Post Office plans to replace the counter service with a self-service kiosk.

When it was announced in December, there were two public meetings and a petition signed by 800 people asking for a change of heart.

Last Thursday the Post Office said it had ’diligently’ considered all the feedback and responded to the need for a face-to-face service.

It will appoint a partner to provide an ’enhanced offering’ to what it originally proposed by way of a more personal service trial, with assistance provided to customers to operate the touch screen, pay bills, fill out forms and collect parcels.

However, people won’t be able to collect their pensions and benefits there. They must either go to another post office or get payments directly into their bank accounts.

Resident Brenda Crellin said: ’It’s no good, It doesn’t pay pensions.

’The kiosk in Colby in the Spar is never used. People won’t go to Castletown. It’s so small they’ve got to stand out in the rain.

People are furious. The Post Office is victimising the most vulnerable in society, pensioners and disabled people. It’s the community.

’Collecting their benefit is for some the one thing people force themselves to do in the week.’

Arbory, Castletown and Malew MHK Jason Moorhouse said:’The [Post Office] statement resembles the process of adding garnish to a pre-prepared meal.

’As we feared, the machine is still the board’s favoured option and the most vulnerable will now be asked to move on.

’A significant number of the questions which I have asked in Tynwald and Keys this month, aimed to raise concerns about the impact on the local community of these changes.

’This statement and the answers that I have received, really make me concerned about what we have become and more importantly where we are going. Too many of our decision makers appear to believe it is more important to tick a box than actually care for the people we represent.’

The Post Office said the decision is to reduce costs in a business which made a loss of £1.2m in 2018 to 2019, but local MHK Graham Cregeen queried its overall approach to running the business.

’They have completely disregarded all the comments made,’ he said. ’This is a cop out. There are no definite costs of the savings that will be made. How much will they save?

’They could have the shop and benefits side by side. If somebody was allowed to run the (post office) service at a lower price why can’t they do that? The Post Office say they have got to have one person dedicated to the post office. Someone in Ye Olde Bakery (the shop where the service currently is) could run it.’

He added: ’There are 300 houses being built in the village. It has one of largest industrial estates, there is Ronaldsway Gateway in Ballasalla.

’They’re not looking to the future. They’re cutting off the limb of their business and forcing people to go to other businesses. It’s as though they’re managing the decline of their business.

’When I was chairman of the Post Office I was banging on saying you should advertise what you do.

’It’s like they don’t want to be a postal business. Three people at the top are on over £100,000 each, Why don’t they look at reducing that?

’I will make further representations. They are following a really bizarre model. The post office in Port St Mary and Sulby could be going.

’Ballasalla is the 10th busiest so there could be more to follow (and close). It’s having the vision to grow the business to secure it.’