Express Dairies is planning to get its milkmen to deliver letters and parcels along with the daily pinta.

The company has applied for a licence which would allow it to deliver business mail to householders as well as milk.

If postal regulator Postcomm grants the application, Express Dairies will be given a 12 month licence to carry up to 4.6 million items a year.

At the moment, Royal Mail delivers approximately 80 million items a day.

Decision

Express Dairies delivers to approximately 1.5 million households and 26,000 business in England and Wales each day.

It already delivers 12.8 million leaflets and catalogues for itself and other firms.

The aim is to collect business mail direct from firms and deliver it to households.

Postcomm is seeking responses to the application by 24 June before making a decision.

Breaking up

The regulator said it had also begun consultation on applications from Hays and TNT for modifications to their interim postal licences.

Both companies want to be able to provide extra services if Royal Mail workers go on strike or if there is an emergency or a natural disaster.

Next week the regulator is expected to publish its final proposals for breaking up Royal Mail's monopoly and opening up the postal market to more competition.