Trade unionist for Royal Mail board

Communication Workers Union leader Billy Hayes has welcomed the appointment of former senior trade unionist Margaret Prosser to the board of Royal Mail.

He said the union has been "campaigning for some time to ensure that we have trade union representation on the board. We welcome this first appointment - and look forward to more."

Hayes also welcomed the "small step towards equality" that the appointment represented as "women are a highly rare commodity in the Royal Mail's senior grades."

Prosser was formerly deputy general secretary of the Transport and General Workers Union.