The traditional sight of the postman arriving on a bike to deliver your morning mail could soon be a thing of the past.

In the future it could be the milkman who delivers letters with one hand while putting your pint on the doorstep with the other.

The idea may sound far- fetched but it is one of the options up for discussion in a radical shake-up of an industry currently facing turmoil.

Complaints about Royal Mail and the Post Office, now known as Consignia, have been steadily increasing according to the watchdog group Post Watch, which was launched in March.

It has just flexed its muscles for the first time, warning Consignia it was in breach of its licence over the state of postal services in the Bognor area.

It followed complaints that some homes were going without deliveries for up to four days and many postboxes were not being emptied.

Consignia blamed the problem on a shortage of staff coupled with increased pressure during the run-up to the General Election, when leaflets had to be delivered for the political parties.

The rebuke comes as postal workers in the town prepare to ballot on possible strike action in a row with managers about working practices.

At the other end of Sussex it has been the same story, with postal workers in Eastbourne winning permission for a strike ballot after claims that managers had not consulted them about changes in working hours.

The disputes are the latest in a series of official and unofficial actions which have taken place throughout the South in recent months, often causing major disruption to a service people have usually been able to take for granted.

It has been estimated that 60,000 working days have been lost in the industry during the last 12 months because of strike action.

In Bognor, Post Watch has warned unless services improve it could ask the new regulatory body, known as Postcomm, to levy a fine or impose the ultimate sanction of taking away Consignia's delivery licence.

But, as its policy adviser Andy Frewin pointed out, who could step straight in and take over the service?

That problem could soon be swept away thanks to a Postcomm consultation paper issued last month, which could lead to new companies being given licences to deliver the post.

It even suggested that certain companies already experienced in network activities could be brought in to do the work as an extension of their existing activities.

The list included milk delivery firms, newspaper distributors and even supermarkets.

Chris Procter, a London- based spokesman for the Communications Workers' Union (CWU), is scathing about the suggestion that milkmen could one day be delivering the post.

He said: "I think that shows an ignorance of how the industry works. In many large cities you don't even see a milkman these days."

The union and Royal Mail management are currently waiting for the results of an independent review into industrial relations within the sector.

In Sussex, that could hold the key to an improved era in relations, which may put an end to vital items getting held up in the post, from birthday cards to passports and hospital appointment letters.

Peter Sinnott, who is the branch secretary for the CWU for the BN postcode area, says his members are not worried about competition.

He said: "The role of the regulator is to give more licences and we welcome that because competition leads to better terms and conditions and a general work environment."

Mr Sinnott admitted that in other parts of the UK his union has had problems with unofficial action but added: "In my area we have not lost a single day to unofficial action during the last 12 years."

The strike ballot at Eastbourne is due to take place next week and Mr Sinnott has accused management of creating unrest to cover up what he calls a "deplorable level of service".

He said: "We have just been told that people who have been in the business for less than two years will no longer get sick pay and they want to get rid of a job security agreement we had with no compulsory redundancies.

"If there is industrial action, the first thing I would do is to apologise to the public for any problems that might occur.

"I am still prepared to negotiate and any action will only be the last resort."

Post Watch says the number of complaints from the public has been rising steadily during the last year, which led to the Bognor investigation.

The organisation also says it would welcome the break-up of the old monopoly.

Sussex area spokeswoman Madryn Swanton said: "The consumer cannot be expected to put up with a service that does not deliver."

Consignia says it hopes strike action can be avoided in the South and says extra staff have been hired to solve the problems in Bognor.

But it says the industry has to change and create a new working culture.

Spokesman Richard Smith said: "There are some practices which are 30 years out of date and we have to bring the industry into the 21st Century."

A spokesman for Postcomm says it has not yet licensed any new operators but has already been approached by one company which runs delivery services for the banking industry.

He said: "Part of our role is to introduce competition while preserving the universal service and the standard tariff for posting a letter from, say, Brighton to Aberdeen."

The regulatory body says it expects more companies to come forward with ideas following the consultation paper.

It also says it can see the day coming when, if Consignia is hit by a strike, people can put their mail in another company's box and it will get delivered.