• RunawayFixer@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    3
    ·
    4 days ago

    The Belgian Post was half privatized (50% minus 1 share) about 20 years ago, so that it could modernize without direct political meddling and so that there would be external (non politicized + professionel) oversight. That modernization was really needed and it worked out well enough. The company hasn’t been without controversies, but it’s not a disaster either.

    Since that time, they were still given lucrative government subsidies/contracts to provide certain services that were deemed impossible to be made profitable (according to them), but on which they secretly made billions of euros of profit. Hidden subsidies basically, but still far less than what they used to cost the Belgian state before the modernization.

    • easily3667@lemmus.org
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      3 days ago

      This isn’t that far off from the USPS model, but USPS isn’t protected from republicans out to destroy it.

      • RunawayFixer@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        3 days ago

        Yeah, the political background is completely different, I would not trust the present day usa republicans at all either.

        One other very large difference is that, as I understand it, Usps does not get any outside government funding at all, even for their uneconomical activities. On the other hand, the Belgian post did get direct government funding before the partial privatisation (probably lots), and afterwards they’ve still been receiving subsidies (relatively less) to continue doing uneconomical things. Which means that even if the privatisation of Usps is done in an orderly and conscientious manner, afterwards they will no longer self subsidize those uneconomical activities, leaving the bill to be picked up by the tax payer, or those activities to be cancelled. Either way, the usa public will be worse off than they are now.