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‘The Ri Hon Stephen Byers MP
Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
1 Victorin Street
To all Members of Parliament
27 May 1999 Ou 3000
mail
POST OFFICE AUTOMATION
I thought you might find it helpful to be updated on progress with the Horizon Project
which aims to make sure that our Post Office network is modernised and automated and i
ready to serve us well over the next decades. 1
As you may know the project was entered into in 1996 by the previous administration.
It has suffered severe delays and set backs, That is why, when these delays became
apparent, the Government commissioned 2 major review of the project to decide the
best route forward.
It also became apparent, that given the delays, the original concept of having a magnetic
strip benefit payment card, was technologically out of date, The banks, among others,
are already moving away from the magnetic strip in favour of the next generation
technology - the smart card. We therefore wanted to find a solution that recoguised this
fact.
Tam pleased to say that we have now found a positive way of moving forward on
automation. As a result of this, for the first time ever, post offices will have an up to
date automation platform, helping them to provide a better service for their customers
and representing a major investment in the future of the nationwide network of Post
Offices. The target set for achieving the computerisation of the entire network of Post
Offices, is by the end of 2001, This is a realistic target that we believe can be met. ‘The
introduction of this technology will give the Post Office network a leading position in
the modemising Govemment agenda which aims tomake Government closer to the
people, not least through the use of newer technologies.
du wml
Deparment of Trade and idsry
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The automation of the network will allow us to move from the traditional paper based
methods to a more modem, efficient and fraud-proof way of paying benefit through the
Post Office network, building on banking technology. In this way, we will ensure that
the Post Office network has the services to attract the customers to the other shop
services that local post offices often incorporate so underpinning the existence of a
successful and thriving Post Office network. The move to make payments using the
Automated Credit Transfer system will begin to come in in 2003 and be completed in
2005, giving plenty of time for the network to be ready, and guaranteeing the network
in the meantime. Many benefit recipients already chose to receive benefits via payment
to their bank accounts. The Government can give an assurance that those benefit
recipients who wish to collect their benefits in cash at Post Offices should continue to
be able to do so, both before and after the change-over,
In the interim we wil! be using bar coding on order books to tackle benefit fraud. This
will provide savings of about £100 millinn a year. . I
We shall be involving the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters closely in this
initiative. If you have any questions or queries about these developments, do not :
hesitate to write to myself o Minist ible for the Post Office Ian i
wey
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