The closure of a number of Oxfordshire post offices will go ahead as planned after a last-ditch attempt to save them was defeated in Parliament last night.

A Conservative Party motion demanding the suspension of the Government's national programme to axe up to 2,500 branches across the UK - including 22 in Oxfordshire - was rejected in the House of Commons by a majority of 20 votes.

The motion was supported by three of the county's four Tory MPs and Dr Evan Harris, the Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon.

However, Witney MP and Conservative leader David Cameron abstained, although he told the Commons: "Post offices often provide the only community service in rural areas and the strength of public protest against closures is being ignored by this Government."

Oxford East Labour MP Andrew Smith, who has campaigned against two proposed closures in his constituency, refused to support the motion.

Last week, on the day the Oxford Mail went to Downing Street to deliver a 6,000-signature petition on behalf of readers opposed to county closures, Mr Smith said "let's keep up the campaign - let's win this one". Last night, he dismissed the Conservative motion as an excuse for "party point-scoring"

He said: "The truth is the wording in the Tory motion put to the Commons would not save a single post office, nor give £1 more subsidy - indeed confusion on the Tory front bench cast doubt on whether they would even support the £1.7bn Labour has already committed to help post offices.

"I will keep campaigning hard for our post offices at Grandpont and Iffley. This Tory stunt hasn't helped."

Tony Baldry, the Conservative MP for Banbury, said: "It seems to me if anyone's been out there campaigning in support of local post offices, they should have been supporting the motion.

"I don't think one can simultaneously both give the impression of supporting local communities and post offices and then at Westminster not support that in the division lobby."

Prime Minister Gordon Brown told MPs the Tories' "empty and hollow" motion did not propose extra money for the Post Office and said the Government had committed to ensuring a viable future for the network.

Before last night's vote, David Penwarden, who has been using the Church Way Post Office, in Iffley, for 28 years, said: "I'm sure he (Mr Smith) will vote against the Government in favour of this motion.

"The Tories closed umpteen post offices in their time, so I think we have got to the stage where we have got to stop this nonsense."