SHOW MENU

Post Office (and BT) Inland Telegram Schemes 1970-1982

On 1st October 1981, the various telecommunications aspects of the Post Office were split from the postal aspects with the formation of British Telecom as a completely separate public corporation, and this included the telegram service. In early 1982 a "Telemessage" service was introduced (a message dictated by phone or telex, charged in blocks of 50 words, and sent by first class post, guaranteed to arrive the following day), and from October this completely replaced the inland telegram service.

This marks a reasonable cutoff point, so this listing includes all the Post Office inland telegram schemes and the BT schemes up to and including the one that withdrew the inland telegram service (also the first that was not an amendment to the last Post Office scheme).

Date Scheme Preamble
1970
(21 Dec)

Post Office Telegraph (Inland Written Telegram) Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1970 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note amends the Telegraph (Inland Written Telegram) Regulations 1963 (S.I. 1963 No.558) which have effect under paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 9 to the Post Office Act 1969 as if they were provisions of a Scheme made under section 28 of that Act. The amendment of the Regulations is consequential upon the decision to withdraw the general delivery of telegrams on Christmas Day and New Year's Day (in Scotland) and on Christmas Day and Boxing Day (in other parts of the British Islands).

1971
(15 Feb)

Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note revokes the Telegraph (Inland Written Telegram) Regulations 1963 (S.I. 1963 No.558) which have effect under paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 9 to the Post Office Act 1969 as if they were provisions of a Scheme made under section 28 of that Act: the Scheme also revokes the Post Office Telegraph (Inland Written Telegram) Amendment (No.1) Scheme 1970 (Post Office Scheme T5/1970). The Scheme:

(1) consolidates with amendments the provisions of the above Regulations and Scheme;

(2) expresses in decimal currency the charges which will be payable for inland telegram service on and from 15th February 1971.

1973
(1 Jan)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1972 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 1st January 1973. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) so that the provisions which prescribe the charges and conditions for inland telegrams no longer apply to telegrams sent from the Channel Islands, consequent upon the agreement between the Post Office and the Channel Islands Authorities for the surrender of the Post Office telecommunications monopoly within the Channel Islands in favour of the Authorities.

1973
(26 Mar)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 2) Scheme 1973 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 26th March 1973. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971), the principal change being to provide for value added tax to be added to the charges payable under that Scheme.

1973
(1 Apr)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 2A) Scheme 1973 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 1st April 1973. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971), the principal change being to provide for value added tax to be added to the charges payable under that Scheme. The Scheme revokes the Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 2) Scheme 1973 (Post Office Scheme T3/1973) which was made but failed to come into operation because the London Gazette containing it was not published before the specified date of its coming into operation.

1973
(15 Oct)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 3) Scheme 1973 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 15th October 1973. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) and amending Schemes.

The principal changes are-

(a) charges for inland telegrams are increased;

(b) multiple address and priority telegram facilities will no longer be provided;

(c) there will be one kind of greetings telegram only.

Special rates for press telegrams are discontinued, and the Scheme accordingly revokes the Post Office Inland Press Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T4/1971), the Post Office Inland Press Telegram Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1972 (Post Office Scheme T6/1972) and the Post Office Inland Press Telegram Amendment (No. 2A) Scheme 1973 (Post Office Scheme T4A/1973).

1974
(12 Aug)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 4) Scheme 1974 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 12th August 1974. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 197)1 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) and amending Schemes. The main change which it makes is to increase the charges for inland telegrams.

1975
(28 Apr)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 5) Scheme 1975 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 28th April 1975. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) and amending Schemes. The principal changes which it makes are to alter the method of charging for inland telegrams and to increase the charges generally.

1975
(1 Oct)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 6) Scheme 1975 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under Section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on the 1st October 1975. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) as amended. The principal changes which it makes are to increase generally the charges for inland telegrams and telegrams to the Republic of Ireland, and for supplementary services.

1980
(1 Apr)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 7) Scheme 1980 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under Section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 1st April 1980. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) as amended. The principal changes which it makes are to increase generally the charges for inland telegrams and telegrams to the Republic of Ireland, and for supplementary services.

1981
(1 Jan)

Post Office Inland Telegram Amendment (No. 8) Scheme 1980 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969, and will come into operation on 1st January 1981. It amends the Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1971 (Post Office Scheme T3/1971) as amended. The change will enable the methods of word counting applied to inland and international telegrams to be aligned.

1981
(1 Apr)

Post Office Inland Telegram Scheme 1981 (link)

The Scheme which follows this note has been made under section 28 of the Post Office Act 1969 and will come into operation on 1st April 1981 when it will replace all previous Inland and International Telegram Schemes.

The new Scheme consolidates with amendments and omissions the provisions of previous Telegram Schemes and introduces increases in the charges for most telegrams. Apart from alterations in most charges, the principal changes made by the Scheme are: (1) the replacement of separate Inland and International Telegram Schemes by a single Scheme (2) the omission of provisions relating to services or facilities which are no longer provided and provisions which are otherwise no longer necessary (3) the insertion of Schedules specifying charges and rates of charge in respect of most inland and international telegrams.

1981
(1 Oct)

British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1981 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 21 of the British Telecommunications Act 1981 and will come into operation on 1st October 1981. It amends the Post Office Telegram Scheme 1981 (Post Office Scheme T2/1981).

The principal Scheme will continue to have effect as from the day appointed by the Secretary of State under powers conferred on him by the British Telecommunications Act 1981 for the taking over by British Telecommunications from the Post Office of functions relating to telecommunication, as if it were a Scheme made by British Telecommunications under Section 21 of the Act of 1981. This amending Scheme amends the principal Scheme to take account of a reduction in the published charges for additional words in international meteorological telegrams and by the deletion of the provisions relating to the Complaints Panel.

1981
(26 Oct)

British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 2) Scheme 1981 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 21 of the British Telecommunications Act 1981 and will come into operation on 26th October 1981. It amends the Post Office Telegram Scheme 1981 (Post Office Scheme T2/1981) as amended by the British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1981.

The principal Scheme continues to have effect as from 1st October 1981, the day appointed by the Secretary of State under powers conferred on him by the British Telecommunications Act 1981 for the taking over by British Telecommunications from the Post Office of functions relating to telecommunication, as if it were a Scheme made by British Telecommunications under section 21 of the Act of 1981. This amending Scheme amends the principal Scheme to take account of the withdrawal of inland, overnight telegrams.

1982
(1 Apr)

British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 3) Scheme 1982 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 21 of the British Telecommunications Act 1981 and will come into operation on 1st April 1982. It amends the Post Office Telegram Scheme 1981 (Post Office Scheme T2/1981) as amended by the British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1981 and the British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 2) Scheme 1981.

The principal Scheme continues to have effect as from 1st October 1981, the day appointed by the Secretary of State under powers conferred on him by the British Telecommunications Act 1981 for the taking over by British Telecommunications from the Post Office of functions relating to telecommunication, as if it were a Scheme made by British Telecommunications under section 21 of the Act of 1981.

This amending Scheme amends the principal Scheme to take account of the increase in most telegram charges and to specify charges for telemessages.

1982
(1 Jun)

British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 4) Scheme 1982 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 21 of the British Telecommunications Act 1981 and will come into operation on 1st June 1982. It amends the Post Office Telegram Scheme 1981 (Post Office Scheme T2/1981) as amended by the British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 1) Scheme 1981, the British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 2) Scheme 1981 and the British Telecommunications Telegram Amendment (No. 3) Scheme 1982.

The principal Scheme continues to have effect as from 1st October 1981, the day appointed by the Secretary of State under powers conferred on him by the British Telecommunications Act 1981 for the taking over by British Telecommunications from the Post Office of functions relating to telecommunication, as if it were a Scheme made by British Telecommunications under section 21 of the Act of 1981.

This Amending Scheme amends the principal Scheme to take account of the reduction in most inland telegram charges.

1982
(1 Oct)

British Telecommunications Telegram Scheme 1982 (link)

The Scheme which follows this Note has been made under section 21 of the British Telecommunications Act 1981 and will come into operation on 1st October 1982. The new Scheme consolidates with amendments and omissions the provisions of the previous Telegram Scheme. The principal changes made by the Scheme are: (i) the withdrawal of Telegrams to places within the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man except Telemessage telegrams; (ii) the introduction of multi-address Telemessage telegrams; (iii) the changes of rates for Telegrams to the Republic of Ireland; (iv) the withdrawal of certain international telegram services including the Urgent and Letter Telegrams and (v) the withdrawal of certain services and facilities provided in respect of Telegrams.