Hundreds of Post Offices could close by "stealth" as a result of the controversial privatisation of the Royal Mail, a new report has warned.
The Fabian Society said there was an increased likelihood that the Royal Mail will want to renegotiate its contracts with the Post Office following the sell-off.
The business accounts for a third of the Post Office's annual revenue, but if mail revenues decline, that could be cut by over a fifth - £278 million - said the think-tank.
Reductions of this magnitude would have a "potentially disastrous" effect on Post Office services, especially as subpostmasters are already seeing their income fall, said the report.
Natan Doron, senior researcher at the Fabian Society, said: "The Government has repeatedly insisted that the future of the Post Office network is separate from the debate about the privatisation of Royal Mail, but this argument does not stack up.
"The Post Office relies heavily on the contract it has with Royal Mail. Any renegotiation puts the network of post offices that people rely on in serious jeopardy.
"The loss of majority control of Royal Mail to the public means that any attempts to change the terms of agreement with the Post Office will be impossible to stop.
"The Government must retain its remaining stake in Royal Mail to provide future administrations the opportunity to buy back enough shares to regain control. Failure to do so could result in hundreds of local post office closures by stealth."
George Thomson, general secretary of the National Federation of SubPostmasters, said: "How many warnings does this Government need before it sits up and takes action to protect the thousands of independently-run Post Offices that underpin so many local communities?
"The Fabian Society's report spells out in detail what has to happen for the network to survive, but sadly concludes that a positive outcome is unlikely. We support this belief.
"So we say again to the Government - act now to safeguard the future of subpostmasters by using the unparalleled power of the post office network to deliver new services, and ensure Royal Mail continues to use Post Office Ltd, before it is too late."
The report was published as hundreds of managers at Crown Post Offices staged a 24-hour strike in a dispute over pay.
Unite, which represents 900 managers, said the action hit services at the offices, the larger branches usually sited on high streets.
The union said its members have not received a pay rise since June 2011 and accused the Post Office of "dragging its feet".
Unite official Brian Scott said: "While we understand that the industrial action will cause inconvenience to the public, the ball is in the management's court - as it has been for the last 16 months - to reach a fair and equitable settlement.
"Unite is ready to have talks at any time with the Post Office to resolve this matter, but the management has taken a very hardline stance against our members who have seen their living standards seriously eroded."
Counter staff belonging to the Communication Workers Union have taken a series of strikes this year in a separate row over pay, jobs and branch closures.
They were due to strike again today, but it was called off to allow talks to be held.
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