Post Offices across Gwent say government plans to scrap card accounts could force them out of business.

Sub-postmasters at three Post Offices in Blaenavon alone say they will have to shut if the changes come into force in 2010, and shopkeepers in Maindee, Newport, say they will lose trade.

Between 70 and 80 per cent of Post Office customers use card accounts, the withdrawal system introduced two years ago after pension books were scrapped, to take out benefits in cash over the counter using a PIN.

Now sub-postmasters at the Blaenavon branches in King Street, Prince Street and Forge Side fear scrapping this would put them out of business and customers would have to travel to Pontypool or Abergavenny.

The government contract for the card account runs out after 2010, and the Department for Work and Pensions has yet to say what will replace the scheme.

Nick Tatam, sub-postmaster of the King Street branch and Gwent secretary for the National Federation of Sub-postmasters, said his and other post offices were being allowed to "wither on the vine".

"We are already losing out because people can go to shops and filling stations to pay bills. The only things we can really rely on are benefits and postage, and when the card accounts are cancelled, people will stop coming through the door.

"Most Gwent branches are pretty bottom-of-the-scale ventures and are very dependent on benefits.

"This is a major loss of income. An awful lot of post offices in Gwent are just hanging on. "If the card account is just swept away it's very hard to see what viable business would be left."

Thomas Watkins, 79, retired landlord, has been going to the Prince Street Post Office for 60 years. He said: "I hope it doesn't close - they've taken enough out of this town as it is. We shouldn't have to go down to Pontypool."

Torfaen MP Paul Murphy promised to look into the concerns in Blaenavon.

And a group of shopkeepers from Maindee and Alway, who have post office counters, took their concerns to Newport East MP Jess Morden.

She raised their concerns at a debate in the House of Commons.

She said: "These are a range of shops trying to compete with supermarkets. "If they lose a whole chunk of custom it's going to make it hard for them to compete. People come in to do their banking and a number of other things. In places like Maindee they are a very valuable community service."

A Post Office spokesman said discussions about POCA are ongoing with the Department of Works and Pensions.

He added: "With regard to the recent announcement made by the DWP about Post Office card accounts after 2010, Post Office Ltd appreciates that from a sub-postmasters'

perspective it may seem that the business is not supporting sub-postmasters' and agents. "I assure you this is not the case and we are taking such concerns seriously. It is in all our interests to support the sub-post office network with a range of viable products creating a secure future for sub-postmasters and agents."