Queenzieburn Community Council claim that Mrs McKenna did not support its campaign to save the facility.

Chairman Jean Strutton said: "After a tremendous campaign to save it, supported by all the residents of Queenzieburn and the media, and despite our plea being highlighted on BBC Newsnight Scotland, the powers that be decided to close our post office..

"A lengthy discussion took place and the overall thread running through our discussions was that our MP at Westminster has done little, if anything, to support this village and the rest of her constituency in parts of Lanarkshire and the area of Kirkintilloch East.

"It has been very noticeable that our MP, Rosemary McKenna, did not take part in our campaign, and we shall be writing to her at Westminster to ask why she did not vigorously support us. She only appeared at the public meeting, our final chance, and even then she was unsure as to where she was and called our village 'Banton' instead of Queenzieburn – a point which was noted in disgust by everyone there, and I'm sure noted by the Post Office representatives. it has also been noted that not one Outreach service has been given to Lanarkshire or Kirkintilloch East, another point that our MP in Westminster should have been fighting for long before it reached this stage.

"This campaign has been left to the community council, villagers, and local councillors to fight. That's not fair. The decision to close post offices was made at Westminster and our MP Rosemary McKenna should have been fighting on our behalf from day one. We are now having to fight for an Outreach service for our village and we need the support of our MP at Westminster – that is what she is there for. We expect her full support in fighting for an Outreach service form this village. In fact, we demand it as our right."

SNP Westminster candidate Julie Hepburn said: "Given that Rosemary voted for this post office closure programme in the first place, she bears direct responsibility for the loss of these vital local services.
"I have never accepted that any of our post offices needed to close and know how important they are to the local residents who rely upon them.
That's why both Jamie and I got directly in touch with the residents in the affected areas to ask how closure would affect them.

"We've then used this evidence to write our own submissions to Post Office Ltd, lodging our objections to these closures and we will continue to fight for services in these communities.

"Jamie has contacted NLC to ask them to safeguard our post offices and I will be contacting Post Office Ltd again this week to push for post office services in Banton, Kildrum and Queenzieburn."

Mrs McKenna was in a parliamentary committee early this week and could not be reached for a comment. However, a spokesman for the MP said she would respond to the comment at the earlier opportunity.