A PETITION has been launched to safeguard the future of Farnham's main post office in West Street. It comes in the light of recent fears of post office closures up and down the country and changes in the way they are managed. The town's "directly managed" post office, formerly known as a Crown Post Office, is one of 555 branches which are due to be included in a review at the end of the financial year. But Simon Cordon, Lib Dem prospective parliamentary candidatefor SW Surrey, has called on the Royal Mail to guarantee the future of Farnham's main post office ahead of next year's review, after branding recent assurances from the Post Office as "worthless". Mr Cordon was outside the post office last Wednesday collecting signatures for his campaign. "This post office is vital to the people of Farnham and surrounding areas. The Royal Mail is currently issuing vague denials regarding closure plans," stated the petition. "We hear these every time before a post office is closed," said Mr Cordon. Mr Cordon said he has discovered that the review would not be reporting until 2006/07. In a letter to David Mills, chief executive of Post Office Ltd, he has sought an assurance that Farnham's post office is not only protected for next year, but would be protected after the review finished in 2006/7. "They closed the Boundstone office and said that was it for Farnham. "A year later we lose the East Street and Ridgway offices. In the case of the Crown Offices, I have no doubt that asset stripping is in their minds." The government, he said, "needs to decide whether post offices are an important part of the community, or just a business to run for profit and nothing else". A spokesman for the Post Office said that Mr Mills had "strongly denied reports that a review of the 555 branches directly managed and staffed by the company would result in large numbers closing". He stressed: "This is not a closure programme. It never was. We anticipate that fewer than five directly managed branches will need to closed in 2005/6." With the 555 directly managed branches losing more than £70m last year, the spokesman said Mr Mills was working on plans, in consultation with the unions to bring the post offices to a break-even point.