Ofcom allows Royal Mail to set stamp prices. 60p for first class!

As of 30 April a first class stamp will cost 60p - ouch.

Here are the headlines from the report on the BBC website today.

Stamp prices: First-class stamps to cost 60

A first-class stamp will cost 60p from 30 April after the regulator removed price controls on Royal Mail.

A second-class stamp will cost 50p - some 5p below the top price allowed under the changes made by Ofcom.

The regulator has allowed Royal Mail to set the price of first-class and business mail, claiming that the future of the universal service was at "severe risk" without relaxing controls.

A first class stamp currently costs 46p and a second class stamp costs 36p.

Over the next seven years, the price of second-class stamps will be capped at 55p but this limit could rise with inflation each year

Read the BBC news item in full here or wade through the Ofcom report here.

We've not received official confirmation yet (usually arrives by post several days after the original announcement!).  But assuming it's correct, and the BBC usually is, postal subscriptions will increase as of 3pm 26 April. An across the board increase of 15p, 14p straight to Royal Mail the extra penny to keep the numbers easy and also to cover the increase in the cost of paper which we've not previously passed on therefore subject to official confirmation on stamp prices from Royal Mail 10 weeks or less will increase to £2.50 per week, 11 weeks or more will go up to £2.20.

As there was no VAT increase in last week's Budget there will be no changes to digital subscriptions.