MPs have demanded the suspension of a Post Office closure programme which threatens the future of 49 branches in Sussex.

Tim Loughton, Conservative MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, spoke in the Commons after handing in a petition signed by 5,002 residents of Worthing and Adur.

The petition described the seven closures earmarked for Mr Loughton's constituency and the two proposed for neighbouring West Worthing as the "most severe" changes facing any part of the county.

It urged the Government to instruct the Royal Mail Group to suspend its closure programme and "redefine the criteria" on which closures were proposed to take into account the hardship they would bring communities with high levels of elderly people, deprivation and poor public transport links.

Mr Loughton said the consequences of the closures would be "calamitous" and said his part of Sussex was being hit "disproportionately" compared with Brighton and Hove, which he suggested had got off lightly with five closures. He asked: "Why are we singled out for such treatment?"

Peter Bottomley, Tory MP for West Worthing, paid tribute to The Argus for highlighting residents' concerns.

He said: "I hope that the minister will join us and give us words of comfort and then say to the Post Office, 'You can rescind these decisions. Let the people on the south coast and in Worthing and district have the facilities that they want'."

Post Office Minister Pat McFadden, responding to the adjournment debate, said: "I understand that this is a difficult process that causes concern in local communities. I appreciate that the Post Office provides an important and valued service in local communities."

Mr McFadden said the post office network was being used by fewer people than before and was losing significant amounts of money, partly because of lifestyle changes which had led to more people paying bills online and getting their pensions paid directly into bank accounts.

He said: "There are four million fewer people going through the doors of post offices every week than there were just a couple of years ago. The network loses several million pounds a week. Of the just over 14,000 post offices in the network, three out of four lose money."

The Government was investing £1.7 billion of taxpayers' money up until 2011, including an annual subsidy of about £150 million. But it was still necessary to reduce the size of the network, he said.

Mr McFadden said the access criteria, which stated that 95 per cent of people should remain within one mile of a post office in urban areas, were designed to ensure that "unacceptable gaps" were not left in the network.

But the minister refused to discuss the merits of individual post offices in Sussex.

He said: "Although the Government have set the framework for the closure programme, I do not as a minister take decisions about individual post offices."

That was a matter for the Post Office, which would make its final decisions after the public consultation ends on December 24.

The minister declined an invitation to join the two MPs in Worthing on Thursday to hear the views of residents directly.

A six-week public consultation on the proposed closures is due to end on December 24. To send your views and comments about the closure of a specific branch write to: Gary Herbert, Network Development Manager, Freepost Network Change, or email consultation@postoffice.co.uk or call the customer helpline on 08457 223344.

See the full list of proposed post office closures on this website.

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