UK Post Office Executives “Kept Up the Illusion” That Horizon Was Reliable, Inquiry Finds
UK Post Office executives should have recognized that Horizon was faulty but “upheld the illusion that its data was consistently accurate” when prosecuting sub-postmasters, the initial segment of a public inquiry’s final report has determined.
Chairman Wyn Williams stated that “several senior” individuals within the organization were aware that the system, referred to as Legacy Horizon, was prone to errors up until it was replaced in 2010, with many employees also cognizant that the updated system, Horizon Online, had its own bugs and defects.
The final report revealed that 59 victims of the Horizon scandal contemplated suicide, with 10 actually attempting to take their own lives.
He noted that there was a “real possibility” that 13 individuals took their own lives due to the anguish they experienced during the scandal.
The scandal was thrust into the limelight in January last year with the airing of ITV’s drama *Mr Bates Vs The Post Office*, featuring actor Toby Jones as Alan Bates, a former sub-postmaster and founder of the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance.
Ex-Post Office chief executive Paula Vennells is accused of overseeing a significant number of wrongful prosecutions and convictions and was in her position when Mr. Williams claimed that executives should have been aware of Horizon’s flaws.
The chairman’s 162-page report condemned the “unnecessarily adversarial attitude” of the Post Office and its advisors when making compensation offers to victims, emphasizing that both the organization and the government “simply failed to comprehend how challenging it would be to provide appropriate financial redress.”
Approximately 1,000 individuals were unjustly prosecuted and convicted across the UK between 1999 and 2015 due to defective Fujitsu software, with a considerable number contemplating self-harm, the report indicated.
Mr. Williams also highlighted the conduct of Post Office investigators, stating that sub-postmasters “will have been in completely unfamiliar territory and likely found the experience to be troubling at best and harrowing at worst.”
The release of the first portion of the report today emphasized the catastrophic impact of the scandal on victims and the compensation available to sub-postmasters, with another report potentially assigning blame expected at a future date.
Hinting at his conclusions for the ultimate overarching report, which may still be several months away, Mr. Williams remarked: “While many individuals who testified before me were initially hesitant to concede it, I am convinced from the evidence that a number of senior, and less senior, Post Office employees either knew or, at the very least, should have been aware that Legacy Horizon was prone to errors.
“Yet throughout the entirety of Legacy Horizon’s existence, the Post Office perpetuated the illusion that its data was always accurate.”
Mr. Williams made a total of 19 recommendations in his report, including that the government and the Post Office should publicly announce what they mean by “full and fair redress.”
He also stated that claimants applying for compensation through the main scheme, the Horizon Shortfall Scheme, should have access to free legal advice.
The chairman additionally addressed criticisms of another initiative, the Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme, asserting that claimants should be entitled to the £600,000 fixed offer even if they file their own detailed individual claim.
Mr. Williams urged the government to establish a public body tasked with devising, administering, and delivering compensation to those wronged by authorities.
The report indicated that the number of individuals eligible to file compensation claims related to the scandal is expected to increase “by at least hundreds, if not more, in the upcoming months.”
In a statement, the Post Office remarked: “The inquiry has illuminated the devastating stories of those affected by the Horizon scandal.
“Their experiences embody a shameful chapter in our history.
“Today, we extend an unreserved apology for the suffering inflicted on postmasters and their loved ones.
“We will thoroughly consider the report and its recommendations.”
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