ABOVE: NDP MP grills Canada Post CEO Deepak Chopra over cuts
TORONTO – Deepak Chopra, president and CEO of Canada Post, is facing questions about recently proposed service cuts at an emergency session of the House of Commons transport committee Wednesday.
The postal service announced Dec. 11 it will phase out home delivery in urban centres, increase the cost of stamps and cut its workforce within the next five years.
New Democrat MP Olivia Chow criticized the proposed cuts and called for formal hearings in the new year.
READ MORE: 7 things to know about Canada Post’s plan to axe home delivery
“Harper’s Conservatives can find millions to keep his well-connected friends in the Senate but he can’t find a way to keep mail coming to your door,” Chow said in a statement. “That tells you what Conservative priorities are. These short-sighted service cuts will have the biggest impact on seniors and persons with disabilities.”
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said the decision doesn’t appear to be based on any in-depth study of the potential impact, and wasn’t preceded by any meaningful discussion with customers.
“The consultation that Canada Post apparently did is singularly lacking in metrics, in numbers – it’s basically anecdotal,” he said.
BLOG: Canada Post: You’re doing it wrong
Opposition MPs have accused Canada Post, an independent Crown corporation, of waiting until MPs were out on Christmas break.
“You don’t save a business by cutting services, driving away customers and raising costs,” said Chow. “The Conservatives waited until the House had risen to deliver this lump of coal to Canadians. Canadians deserve better.”
Both the postal service and Transport Minister Lisa Raitt denied the accusation.
According to the CBC, Raitt won’t be in attendance at Wednesday’s meeting.
READ MORE: How Canada Post’s home delivery cuts could affect seniors and the disabled
Postal workers outraged by the proposed cuts are protesting Wednesday, with about 50 people demonstrating outside Raitt’s office in Milton, Ont.
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers are delivering thousands of postcards to Raitt from Canadians who are angry that Canada Post is closing and downsizing public post offices. The union is also protesting Canada Post’s plans to close more post offices in favour of franchises.
Canada Post said it will eliminate 6,000 to 8,000 positions over the next five years.
Watch below: CUPW deliver 12,000 postcards to Minister Lisa Raitt’s office
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