Under the plans, put forward by the Royal Mail last year, local and regional newspapers could lose their subsidised postal service, giving them next-day delivery for second-class rates.
Former government ministers Kate Hoey and Peter Bottomley have signed the Early Day Motion, which forces a debate on the issue in the House of Commons, criticising the Royal Mail and urging the Government to intervene.
The Early Day Motion said the Government should 鈥渟how commitment to such a valuable communications service for so many citizens鈥.
Ted Glynn, group circulation and marketing director of Northcliffe Newspapers, said the postal service played an important part in distribution of its newspapers in the more rural areas of the UK.
He said this related in particular to the Aberdeen Press & Journal which covers an area representing almost 10% of the British mainland. 鈥淚t is an efficient way of getting an essential service to rural communities,鈥 he said.
The Newspaper Society has been locked in talks with the Royal Mail since late last year, so far winning only an extension to the notice period given to publishers about the withdrawal of the service.
Lynn Anderson, communications director at the NS, said: 鈥淭he Newspaper Society, in meetings with Adam Crozier [Royal Mail chief executive] and Stephen Timms [trade minister], has offered to work with the Royal Mail to identify and safeguard those time-critical copies of regional newspapers which are most at risk 鈥 and that offer is still open.
鈥淧ostal subscriptions are the only viable option for many readers 鈥 particularly those living in rural areas 鈥 to obtain their local newspaper. Withdrawing this service would be devastating for many newspapers and threaten a lifeline of local news.鈥
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