House debates

Monday, 6 March 2023

Statements by Members

Bennelong Electorate: Eastwood Post Office

1:47 pm

Photo of Jerome LaxaleJerome Laxale (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

In late January, the community of Eastwood was advised that their local post office would close on 3 March. Their landlord, the City of Ryde council, was set to demolish the building the post office sits in. This became the catalyst for the closure. Whilst the council offered an extension on their current site, they did not offer any alternative premises for lease, and, ultimately, Australia Post made the regrettable decision to close.

Eastwood is a thriving multicultural CBD. It's the home of countless small businesses, and many residents have relied on access to a post office. This closure will hit our community hard. Many members of the community reached out to me to express their concerns about how this closure would impact on them. Through a consultation process my office set up, we figured out the areas of highest use by businesses and locals. Through close work alongside Australia Post, we've been able to start the process to implement permanent solutions to ensure our area continues to receive the essential postal services it relies upon.

We've been able to get a commitment to install 24/7 parcel lockers—we're just waiting on the council to secure a site—and to ensure more accessibility to passport applications and services across our region. Importantly, we've also been able to implement a permanent solution for all those small businesses and residents who have a PO box. I'd encourage all Eastwood PO box customers to contact Grace and her magnificent team at the Denistone East LPO. And I'd like to thank all those who responded to our Have Your Say.