BRITISH Prime Minister Mr John Major courted fresh controversy in the Conservative Party yesterday by saying he might revive plans to privatise Britain's post office.

Mr Major was humiliated 15 months ago when he had to abandon plans to sell off the Royal Mail in the teeth of fierce opposition from some of his own members of parliament.

Interviewed by BBC television, Major said he would not try again to privatise the post office in the life of the current parliament. He said he would consider including a privatisation pledge in his programme for the next election, which must be held by May 1997.

Major said he was sorry he had to drop the sell-off plan because a privatised post office would have been more efficient and could have expanded its services in the private sector. 1 would like to have seen it, but there was no parliamentary majority for it, he said.