Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale MP David Mundell has renewed calls for the Royal Mail to look again at the issues surrounding the ML12 postcode. The local MP has been contacted once again by angry constituents who are tired of receiving targeted mailing based on their Motherwell postcode and facing confusion around their insurance premiums which differ substantially from those of others who live just 10 minutes down the road.
The ML12 Postcode includes a number of addresses in the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway. Houses in parts of Dumfriesshire and the Scottish Borders have Lanarkshire ML 12 postcodes, causing confusion with deliveries and insurance. The Royal Mail has previously refused to change the postcodes so that they start with DG (Dumfries and Galloway) or EH45 (Tweeddale) to make them the same as neighbouring communities. Mr Mundell who has in the past written to the Department for Business and Skills and raised the issue in parliament is frustrated that the issue seems to be “going around in circles’’. Mr Mundell has now raised the issue once again with Julie Pironi, Head of Royal Mail in Scotland during a recent meeting.
Mr Mundell understanding is that ML12 postcodes begin with ML12 6**. However, in other parts of his constituency the Royal Mail does used subdivisions. He has once again raised the possibility of making use of an ML12 7** code for the Scottish Borders and ML12 8** for the area covered by Dumfries and Galloway.
Commenting Mr Mundell said: "I have been campaigning on this issue since being elected as a member of parliament and I am keen to resolve the issue which continues to frustrate and irritate many of those affected. I have once again asked the Royal Mail to explore the options of subdivisions as this would at least ensure that these areas could be separately identified. A good example of why they should be separately identified is with the provision of direct or unaddressed mail. For example my constituents in the Scottish Borders have in the past received newsletters from South Lanarkshire Council and adverts for a supermarket in Lanark, neither of which are appropriate to them.
"There is of course a strong body of opinion that the postcodes should be changed completely. However, I have once again asked Royal Mail to consider the creation of ML12 subdivisions in the hope of finding a compromise.”
Mr Mundell added: “I accept that Royal Mail is not responsible for the use that others make of postcodes, however this situation cannot be allowed to continue. My constituents continue suffer inconvenience, cost and practical difficulties on matters such as emergency services contact, insurance and non-postal deliveries and we therefore need a common sense approach that ends this post code lottery.”