More news has emerged from Royal Mail that may shed some (dim) light towards its CEO Rico Back resigning on Friday.

Overall revenue at UKPIL (the formal name for Royal Mail Group) was down £22 million year on year in April. There were 308 million fewer addressed letters sent through the network (down 33%) and letter revenues fell 23%. This was offset by UK parcel volumes growing by 31% and parcel revenues growing by 20%.

Costs to Royal Mail grew by £40 million, that was driven by overtime and agency costs due to the spike in demand for parcels and permanent staff absences on sick leave. Social distancing measures and PPE added to costs too.

In a statement UKPIL said, “Following engagement with key stakeholders on a package of potential measures for the UK business, we will provide a further update on 25 June 2020, along with Full Year Results 2019-20, to cover possible outcomes for 2020-21, together with actions to: i) mitigate the impact of COVID-19; ii) minimise losses in UKPIL; and iii) ensure a sustainable long-term business.”