Royal Mail has called for an immediate review of the direct delivery market amid fresh warnings of the threat it poses to the universal delivery service.
The privatised firm has asked the regulator Ofcom to bring forward a review planned for next year to determine the regulatory changes it believes are needed to safeguard the nationwide, same price goes anywhere service.
Western Isles MSP Alasdair Allan said he would welcome any review of the service.
He said: “The move to privatise elements of the Royal Mail threatens the service in the islands perhaps more than anywhere else.”
Mr Allan added: “Island costumers already suffer additional delivery charges from a number of national delivery companies and I feel strongly that the universal obligation to deliver mail at the same rate is important.”
In its submission, Royal Mail said it was already managing a structural decline in letters of between 4% and 6% a year, but highlighted the threat of “unfettered” direct delivery competition.
The company said its revenue could be cut by more than £200 million in 2017/18 because of competition from rival TNT Post alone.
Direct deliveries from competitors undermined the universal service through “cherry picking”, said Royal Mail, adding that other firms were not bound by the same stringent regulatory requirements it faced.
TNT is quickly achieving a local market share of 14% in areas where it operates and intends to cover 42% of UK addresses by 2017, said the submission.
An Ofcom spokesman said: “We will consider the report Royal Mail has given us carefully. Protecting the universal service is at the heart of Ofcom’s work, and our current evidence clearly shows that the service is not currently under threat. We would assess any emerging threat to the service quickly, in the interests of postal users.”
Dave Ward, deputy general secretary of the Communication Workers Union said: “Ofcom’s primary duty is to protect the universal service which allows us to send a letter to Belfast, Bristol or Brighton all for the same price. If Ofcom does not carry out an immediate review of the impact of direct delivery on universal service, it will have failed in its duty.”