CUTBACKS to the postal service in Ilkley are proving as popular as a hefty bill dropping through the letterbox.

Few cared when they learned that Royal Mail was about to stamp out its second postal delivery of the day, and most were happy to open a few letters while buttering their toast in the morning. But no-one suspected that 'changes to mail deliveries' heralded last week were effectively sounding the last post for early-morning mail.

The post will now be bang on time for those businesses big enough to command a delivery requiring a van, and those wealthy enough to splash out more than £2,000 a year to pay for their own early-morning delivery. Smaller businesses on the other hand, such as be offices, shops, or those who run their business from home, could find themselves getting their post at lunchtime - especially if they are unlucky enough to be 'at the end of a round'.

As for the humble domestic delivery, gone are the days of reading the post over breakfast for many Ilkley residents. And Ilkley people have their own problem with free option of driving to the delivery office to pick up their post at 8.30am - Ilkley's famous town centre parking problems. Appropriately, letters telling Ilkley about the postal changes did not get to homes and businesses until last week, and the changes came into effect on Monday.

Royal Mail claims the changes will standardise the working day for hard-working postmen and women, and the delivery service cannot make exceptions for some recipients as others will complain they are missing out.

But when those who take advantage of the customer services complaints line could benefit from having delivery rounds altered for their benefit; and when the promptness of your service can depend on how much you pay, or the size and quantity of parcels coming through your letterbox, it's bound to leave quite a lot of people feeling like second-class citizens.