ROYAL MAIL’S £10.5 million fine for missing its postal delivery targets in 2023/24 is the “direct result of the deliberate and sustained dismantling of postal services,” the Communication Workers Union (CWU) said today.

Regulator Ofcom made the fine — which comes after it issued a £5.6 million penalty in November 2023 — after just under three-quarters of first class post was delivered on time during the period, well short of its 93 per cent target.

Ofcom director of enforcement Ian Strawhorne said: “Royal Mail’s poor service is now eroding public trust in one of the UK’s oldest institutions.