[Moderator's note: This thread might have been better posted in 'News' than 'Chatterbank'. Please keep CB clear for more light-hearted posts in general].
If a firm's annual accounts show that it's made a one billion pound loss, it's hardly surprising that it's prices will have to rise:
https://www.standard.co.uk/business/royal-mail-made-ps1-billion-loss-after-cutting-thousands-of-jobs-international-distribution-services-b1081951.html
Royal Mail has seen a massive slump in the number of letters being posted, simply because most people now use email. They're also facing more and more competition in the cut-throat parcels sector from firms like Evri, etc. (If you walk into our local post office, you can choose between the Royal Mail/Parcelforce counter and the UPS one. Both of our local Co-op stores are collection points for Evri, which has a tie-in with eBay, meaning that most eBay sellers probably prefer Evri to Royal Mail for sending their parcels). Royal Mail is further hindered by their current obligation to provide daily deliveries to even the most remote Scottish islands for the same prices that they charge to deliver to London or Birmingham).
My own thinking is that £1.25 is a
ridiculously small amount to get a letter from, say, Exeter to Edinburgh and I'm happy to pay it on the very rare occasions that I need to use snail mail these days.