Senators are pressing cabinet to outline concrete steps to save Canada Post, warning that promised “structural reforms” have yet to materialize while the postal service continues to bleed money.Blacklock's Reporter says senators on the national finance committee criticized management for slow progress and called for long-term planning to make post offices financially sustainable. “Who is looking out 10 years to see what we’re building here?” asked Sen. Sandra Pupatello (Ont.), emphasizing the need for new services that bring people into post offices, from ATMs to other revenue-generating offerings.Assistant deputy public works minister Lorenzo Ieraci acknowledged the post office’s current measures are piecemeal. “We are taking steps now to get them in a better financial situation going forward, but the question is, what is Canada Post a quarter century from now?” he said, noting that traditional letter mail is in terminal decline.Cabinet approved sweeping changes last September, including replacing doorstep delivery with community mailboxes, cutting mail service to fewer days per week, and lifting the 1994 moratorium on rural post office closures. Public Works Minister Joel Lightbound had promised additional reforms to Canada Post’s mandate, governance and funding framework, but no action has been taken. Lightbound’s paternity leave, noted by Liberal MP Iqra Khalid, has further delayed progress..Sen. Claude Carignan (Que.) expressed frustration at the state of the national postal service, which reported an $841 million pre-tax loss in 2024 and is projected to lose roughly $1 billion in 2025.“How come an organization that was set up in 1867 with a monopoly throughout the country has lost its way?” he asked.Several senators suggested reviving postal banking to generate revenue and provide essential services in small and remote communities. Sen. Andrew Cardozo (Ont.) noted that while bank branches are disappearing across the country, postal banks could serve as a vital lifeline. Sen. Rosa Galvez (Que.) pointed to international examples, noting postal banks are common in Europe and help raise revenue for postal systems.Canada Post experimented with limited financial services in Alberta and Nova Scotia in partnership with Toronto Dominion Bank in 2021. A 2016 Department of Public Works survey found 39% of small business owners nationwide would use postal banking if offered, highlighting potential demand for expanded services.
