NORTH Wiltshire MP James Gray has expressed his concern at the proposed closure of Pewsham Post Office and has written to Post Office Ltd requesting an urgent meeting to discuss it.

He has vowed to do everything in his power to prevent its closure.

"Pewsham is a vibrant area," he said. "The Post Office provides a central focus for the community, as well as an essential service for local residents."

His comments came just a week after Post Office Ltd confirmed the Pewsham branch was the latest to get the axe as part of the Urban Reinvention Programme.

The Pewsham office is operated from the Tesco Express store on Pewsham Estate. Tesco inherited the outlet when it took over the One Stop chain of convenience stores two years ago.

"This announcement reconfirms my support for the modernisation of the Market Place Post Office," Mr Gray continued. "It is vital that it becomes a commercially viable operation."

Mr Gray said: "If it stayed as it is, then I very much fear that the closure of the Market Place Post Office would similarly become inevitable."

Mr Gray called the proposal 'most unwelcome' and 'poorly thought-through.

But film company manager Neil Parson, 32, said he does not support the office anymore. He said "I had urgent parcels that had to get to their destination by Monday. I got to the post office at 12.25pm on Saturday with ten jiffy bags that urgently needed sending, but the lady behind the counter refused to take them.

"She said she would take one," Mr Parsons said. "But she was going home in a minute and if she took them all it would mean she would be late.

"She pulled the shutters down in front of me and refused to take them because the office was due to shut at 12.30pm. If you treat customers like that, they deserve to be shut down. I send hundreds of pounds of parcels but I now go into the town office."