Mr. Speaker, in late August the minister responsible for the Canada Post Corporation ordered a top to bottom review of the mandate of Canada Post.
It is my understanding that in the very near future the minister will announce the details of the review: who the chairperson will be, how long the review will take and whether it will be held in public or in private.
In the past I have called for the minister to establish an independent commission that would evaluate the performance and mandate of Canada Post on an ongoing basis. Rural and urban communities have been greatly affected by post office closures, privatization, community mailboxes, slow delivery and stamp and service price increases.
Therefore, I urge the minister to ensure that the review recognize that service is important to the public and not use the results of the review only to justify further privatization and service reductions. The review should be held in public with cross-country public hearings and adequate time given for groups and individuals to make presentations.