VAT plea against PO
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• Express carriers are about to increase pressure on the Government to force a 17.5% increase in charges for international Post Office letters and parcels.
The move follows the gathering of evidence from international carriers said to show that the introduction of new VAT rules in January has led to parcels companies losing work. Europe's post offices are still exempt from charging VAT on their international services.
The Association of International Courier and Express Services—whose members include DHL, TNT, United Parcel Service and Securicorwill lobby MPs in the autumn in the hope of persuading a backbencher to table a debate on the issue.
AICES executive secretary Anne de Courcy says: "We now feel we've got sufficient evidence to show that our complaints aren't just theoretical... We've got statements from our members that say they have lost business because of the imposition of VAT" However, the statements do not quantify the loss.
The Government is in turmoil over whether to privatise the Post Office, including Royal Mail and Parcelforce.