HIGHWAYMAN Dick Turpin rode to London today in protest at the Government's planned robbery of rural post offices.

The famous York outlaw returned to the capital to serve Prime Minister Tony Blair with more than 1,000 coupons signed by supporters of the Evening Press Counter Attack campaign.

He declared: "The people of North Yorkshire are appealing to you to stop the daylight robbery of our post offices.

"More than 1,000 people have supported the Counter Attack campaign. They urge you to halt the Postal Services Bill before it destroys an essential lifeline for our local communities."

Dick, alias York actor Richard Batty, who plays the famous rogue at the York Dungeon tourist attraction, was joined by sub-postmasters Pam Elam, from Kellington, and Ron Condon, from Byram and Brotherton, both near Selby.

Ryedale's Tory MP, John Greenway. and John Grogan, Selby's Labour MP, were also present.

Mrs Elam said: "It is vitally important that we try to maintain all of the rural network and I really do hope that the Government will listen to us.

"This campaign shows that local people are a force to be reckoned with and, surely, the Government has to take notice."

Mr Condon said: "I am here today not to save post offices but to save freedom of choice - the freedom for people of all communities to choose to have their benefits paid at their local post office."

As Dick Turpin knocked on the Prime Minister's residence, a mass rally was taking place across London as thousands of members of the National Federation of Sub-postmasters demonstrated against the plans.

A three-million-strong national petition was handed over.

Mr Greenway said: "The potential of this bill is for considerable hardship, especially for the elderly and for young mothers with children and no transport.

"It also leads to the ludicrous situation where people are not getting local access to their cash, but the Government is forced to spend any savings on subsidies to keep a basic network of post offices, which will be a lot less than is available now.

"The scale of the public outcry shows that the people have got the message of what this means. Now we need the ministers to get it."

The Postal Services Bill proposes that most benefits, from pensions to child allowance, could be paid directly into bank accounts instead of over post office counters.

It could sound the death knell for thousands of sub-post offices that rely on commission from handling benefits.

Evening Press editor Liz Page said: "For many local communities in rural North Yorkshire and in the rest of the country, the post office is a lifeline for old people and young mothers.

"If benefits are paid through banks, it will rob the post offices of a vital part of their business and threaten their survival."

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