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With branches shutting, jobs axed and the price of stamps soaring, Royal Mail ’s privatisation has not been warmly received by many – except the fatcat shareholders.

And that is no surprise as they are being paid £500,000 a day.

The lavish handouts will infuriate the 11,000 postal workers who have lost their jobs since the service was flogged on the cheap by the Tory and Lib Dem coalition.

And customers will no doubt be angry that the £200million made from the sale of assets has not helped bring down costs – with the price of stamps up by 12%.

Royal Mail handed £626,340,000 to non-employee shareholders between October 2013 and the end of the financial year 2016/17, according to Labour.

(Image: Getty Images Europe)

Communication Workers Union general secretary Dave Ward said: “A massive £500,000 a day paid in dividends to mainly hedge funds and city ­shareholders will sicken the public.

This money should have been used to modernise Royal Mail giving the public a first-class service alongside protecting postal workers’ terms and conditions.

“At a time of school cuts, hospital closures and record use of food banks it is outrageous to see such an abuse of funds which should be in public hands.”

He echoed Labour MP Helen Hayes, who last week told the Commons that receipts from the sale of post office assets “are recouped entirely for the benefit of ­shareholders”.

More than £800million has been paid out to shareholders, including to employees, since Royal Mail was ­privatised in October 2013.

Over the same period it shut 142, or one in 10, delivery offices, according to Labour – a figure disputed by the firm which claims only 51 have been scrapped.

The company last week won an injunction stopping this Thursday’s planned 48-hour strike by posties in protest over pensions, wages and jobs.

It would have been the first walkout since it was sold.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has insisted Royal Mail would be ­renationalised if he gets into power.

He said: “It was sold off on the cheap, now hundreds of millions of pounds are being siphoned off by shareholders.

“Labour will end this rip off, bring Royal Mail back into public ownership.”

(Image: AFP)

Since privatisation, customers have complained the elderly and disabled must often travel further to use postal services such as pensions and rent, due to the number of closed branches.

Royal Mail defended the huge payouts, insisting dividends are a “good thing”.

A spokesman said: “Our dividend payments have benefited the many Royal Mail people and private investors who own the company.

“They also benefit the many UK pension funds who have invested in Royal Mail on behalf of UK workers.

“Alongside the legitimate payment of dividends, Royal Mail has invested £1.5billion in the firm since privatisation.

“In state ownership, Royal Mail was starved of investment.

“We don’t recognise the figure of 142 delivery offices closing since ­privatisation. In fact, less than 4% of our