The forthcoming postal strike will cause chaos across the country, but the CLA believes that the damage done to rural businesses and communities will be greater.

The rural experts say that fewer post offices, fewer courier services, dependence on satellite navigation, lack of access to broadband and the resultant reliance on the rural post is a worrying combination which means that rural areas will be hardest hit.

Douglas Chalmers, Director CLA North, said: “I can remember the postal strike in the 1980s being a boon for manufacturers of the relatively new fax machine, but I have to smile ruefully at some of the solutions being offered this time round.

“Apparently there will be a greater chance of post being collected from Post Offices than post boxes. This is all very well if you still have a Post Office in the neighbourhood.

“Alternative delivery services are available - at a cost - but drivers will not have the local knowledge of our regular Postie. I know from personal experience that SatNavs cannot cope with the large areas covered by rural postcodes, making for a slower and more inefficient service.

“And of course, where rural areas cannot access fast, affordable broadband, using the internet for business purposes is simply not an option.

“The timing of this strike means that many rural businesses will be cut off at the worst possible time. Orders and cheques will be held up, causing disappointment and frustration and damaging already fragile cash flows. Tourism businesses will be taking bookings for half term, Christmas and New Year. Food producers and suppliers should be marketing and taking orders for Christmas – their busiest time of the year.

“Faxes saved the day twenty years ago. We cannot sort the broadband problem overnight, but we now have even more evidence to demonstrate why a solution must be found to once and for all close this unfair digital divide.”