logo
First tranche of final report from Horizon scandal inquiry to be published

First tranche of final report from Horizon scandal inquiry to be published

More than 900 subpostmasters were wrongfully prosecuted by the Post Office between 1999 and 2015 in what has been dubbed as the worst miscarriage of justice in British legal history.
Many were wrongly convicted of crimes such as theft and false accounting after faulty Horizon software made it look as though money was missing from their accounts.
Subpostmasters' lives were destroyed – with some bankrupted by legal action and sent to prison.
On Tuesday, the first volume of the Horizon IT inquiry's final report will be published – covering the devastating impact on the lives of the scandal's victims and the compensation process.
The issue of financial redress has frequently been flagged as an issue by subpostmasters – with many still awaiting full compensation.
The various compensation schemes have been criticised by victims as unfair and difficult to navigate – processes which lead campaigner Sir Alan Bates has previously described as 'quasi-kangaroo courts'.
Retired judge Sir Wyn Williams, the chairman of the probe, will make a public statement following the report's publication.
The inquiry was established in 2020, with a number of witnesses giving evidence on the use of Fujitsu's Horizon system, Post Office governance and the legal action taken against subpostmasters.
In a previous statement addressing the compensation schemes, the Department for Business and Trade said: 'This Government has quadrupled the total amount paid to affected postmasters to provide them with full and fair redress, with more than £1 billion having now been paid to over 7,300 claimants.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Tesco giving away FREE Clubcard points in ‘amazing' days out deal this summer
Tesco giving away FREE Clubcard points in ‘amazing' days out deal this summer

Scottish Sun

time23 minutes ago

  • Scottish Sun

Tesco giving away FREE Clubcard points in ‘amazing' days out deal this summer

Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TESCO is giving away Clubcard points for free as part of a huge summer day out deal. The limited-time reward scheme is part of the 30th anniversary of the supermarket's Clubcard Rewards. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Clubcard users are in for a chance to get a huge number of points for free Credit: Alamy 3 Clubcards allow shoppers to make huge savings Credit: Reuters 3 The huge promotion ends on July 29 Credit: Alamy Shoppers can take home 1000 Clubcard points free when they exchange at least £5 of Clubcard vouchers with one of Tesco's Days Out Reward Partners. That means shoppers can earn £10 worth of points for free, just for exchanging their vouchers. However, customers need to exchange their points before July 29th if they want to make use of the deal. Celebrating the launch of the incredible deal, Shama Wilson - Tesco's Group Membership and Loyalty Director - said: 'We know our customers are always looking for things to do across the summer, especially during school holidays, and so this is always a popular time for Clubcard members to exchange their vouchers for double their value with Reward Partners. 'To make that even more rewarding, and to celebrate 30 years of Clubcard rewards, we are offering an amazing £10 of points back when you spend on days out. 'It means you can exchange your vouchers and get great savings while getting £10 of points in return to go towards your weekly shop or even another great day out later in the year.' The deal can only be redeemed once on each Clubcard. Over 23 million British households have a Clubcard, helping customers to make huge savings when shopping at Tesco. The mega-chain offers several other ways of earning points quickly on the app, with its Clubcard Challenges. The challenges vary from customer to customer and are tailored to individual shopping habits. Tesco fans are set to love the latest items in stores for 25 per cent off when you use clubcard Completing the challenges can give shoppers huge numbers of points, with some customers taking home £50. One shopper said: "This will be my second time, I got the full £50 back today just from buying what I usually buy." Another took to social media to share that they earned £32 in one challenge. Every pound spent at Tesco earns you one Clubcard point, so the challenges can help you make savings faster.

Post Office scandal may have led to more than 13 suicides, inquiry finds
Post Office scandal may have led to more than 13 suicides, inquiry finds

The Guardian

time28 minutes ago

  • The Guardian

Post Office scandal may have led to more than 13 suicides, inquiry finds

More than 13 people may have killed themselves as a result of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal and it drove at least 59 more to contemplate suicide, according to the first findings from the public inquiry into what has been labelled the worst miscarriage of justice in UK history. The 162-page volume one report from Sir Wyn Williams, the retired judge who chaired the hearings, looks at the 'disastrous human impact' on thousands of post office operators wrongly held responsible for shortfalls in their branches caused by faulty software. It also covers the issue of compensation, arguing the Post Office and its advisers had in many cases adopted an 'unnecessarily adversarial attitude' to those seeking financial redress, who now number at least 10,000 – far higher than the more than 1,000 people prosecuted. Speaking after the report was published, Williams said evidence had revealed a 'profoundly disturbing' picture. While four suicides have been blamed on the scandal, Williams said at least 13 could be linked to it, and the total may be higher with some deaths unreported. A further 19 people began abusing alcohol, with some saying they could not sleep at night without drinking first. Of the 59 who had thoughts about killing themselves, 10 went on to attempt suicide, some on more than one occasion. Contemplating suicide 'was a common experience across both those who were and were not prosecuted', the report said. One post office operator said: 'The impact on me of the treatment the Post Office subjected me to has been immeasurable. The mental stress was so great for me that I had a mental breakdown and turned to alcohol as I sank further into depression. I attempted suicide on several occasions and was admitted to a mental health institution twice.' About 1,000 post office operators were prosecuted and convicted by the Post Office between 1999 and 2015, the report said, because of faulty Horizon accounting software that suggested they had committed fraud. A further 50 to 60 people, possibly more, were prosecuted but not convicted. The total wrongly held responsible for losses was in the thousands, with many making up the shortfall out of their pocket without ever being charged. Post Office bosses either knew, or should have known, that the IT system was faulty, the report said, but they 'maintained the fiction that its data was always accurate' when prosecuting branch owner-operators. Williams said he had received more than 200 witness statements from victims and almost all 'had suffered very significantly and many had endured a degree of hardship which was very severe by any standards'. Some became seriously ill, struggled with mental health problems, suffered financial hardship, lost their homes or went bankrupt. Even those who were acquitted often found themselves 'ostracised' in their communities, and many died before receiving compensation – reports have put the figure at about 350. Some family members also suffered psychiatric and other illnesses and 'very significant financial losses'. The report revealed about 10,000 people were claiming compensation through four schemes, two of which were merged in early June, and that number was likely to rise 'at least by hundreds, if not more' over the coming months. There were more than 3,000 claims still to resolve, half of which were in the initial stages, Williams said. In the report, he said: 'On too many occasions, the Post Office and its advisers have adopted an unnecessarily adversarial attitude towards making initial offers, which have had the effect of depressing the level at which settlements have been achieved.' Williams called for urgent action to deliver 'full and fair' compensation, asking the government and the Post Office to agree on a definition of the term to follow when deciding how much to offer. Williams said victims should receive free legal advice, funded by the government, to help them decide whether they should opt for the fixed-sum offer or assessment of their claims, and close family members of affected post office operators should also be compensated. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Williams said the government had until 10 October to respond, and asked that ministers, with the Post Office and the Japanese technology company Fujitsu, which developed the faulty software, outline a programme for restorative justice, such as counselling and bursaries for those affected, by the end of that month. He also called for the creation of a standing public body that could administer and deliver 'financial redress to persons who have been wronged by public bodies'. In response to the findings, the chair of the Post Office, Nigel Railton, made a 'clear and unequivocal apology to every single person affected by this scandal' on behalf of the company and admitted 'as an organisation we let them down'. He vowed to do 'everything in my power' to make sure that affected branch operators received the redress they were entitled to, as soon as possible. The report, which follows 225 days of inquiry hearings with 298 witnesses, did not detail the total compensation paid out so far. According to the government, more than £1bn had been paid out to more than 7,300 post office operators by 9 June. No date has yet been set for the publication of volume two of Williams's findings, which will cover the technical issues with the Horizon IT system, the Post Office's handling of the reported discrepancies, legal proceedings against post office operators, institutional culture and government oversight. It could come as late as next year. Williams's report contained 17 case illustrations, including that of Millie Castleton, who was eight when the Post Office alleged that her father, Lee Castleton, was liable for shortfalls at his branch and his contract was terminated. He was later ordered to pay the Post Office £25,858.95 plus interest and their legal costs, a total sum of £309,807.94. Millie recounted that she became the target of bullying at school, where she was asked: 'Didn't your dad steal loads of money or something?' At 17, she was suffering from depression and was diagnosed with anorexia, and was forced by illness to 'take a year out' at university. At one point she was admitted to hospital with heart-related problems. 'That nagging voice in my head … still tells me that my past and my family's struggle will define me,' Millie said. 'I'm 26 and … I'm still fighting, as are many hundreds involved in the Post Office trial.' The scandal was exposed after years of campaigning and media investigations but was brought to the attention of many people by the ITV dramatisation Mr Bates vs the Post Office. Days after the series aired in January last year, the government announced plans to legislate to exonerate those who had been wrongly prosecuted, and the bill was passed in June. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said in her debut budget last October that the government had set aside £1.8bn to cover all compensation claims. The government is the sole shareholder of the Post Office and is therefore responsible for paying out. Compensation payments have so far ranged from £10,000 to more than £1m. The postal minister, Gareth Thomas, said: 'Sir Wyn's … recommendations are immensely helpful as a guide for what is needed to finish the job, and we will respond in full to parliament after carefully considering them.' In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@ or jo@ In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at

Three men working for Wagner terrorist group convicted of arson attack on London warehouse linked to Ukraine
Three men working for Wagner terrorist group convicted of arson attack on London warehouse linked to Ukraine

Scottish Sun

timean hour ago

  • Scottish Sun

Three men working for Wagner terrorist group convicted of arson attack on London warehouse linked to Ukraine

The case is the first to result in convictions of British criminals acting as proxies for the proscribed Wagner Group RUSSIAN PLOT Three men working for Wagner terrorist group convicted of arson attack on London warehouse linked to Ukraine Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THREE MEN working for the Wagner Russian terrorist group were yesterday convicted of an arson attack on a warehouse linked to Ukraine. The trio caused £1 million worth of damage to an industrial unit in Leyton, East London, destroying £100,000 worth of satellite communication equipment destined for Ukraine on March 20 last year. An Old Bailey jury yesterday convicted gang members Nii Mensah, 23, Jakeem Rose, 23, and Ugnius Asmena, 20, of aggravated arson with intent to endanger life. Mensah, of Thornton Heath, South London, livestreamed the warehouse blaze to Earl after he and Rose, from Croydon, set fire to the building as Asmena waited in a car. The case is the first to result in convictions of British criminals acting as proxies for the proscribed Wagner Group. Drug dealer Dylan Earl, 20, and Gatwick Airport cleaner Jake Reeves, 23, orchestrated the plot on behalf of the Russian Wagner group of mercenaries. They planned further arson attacks on a restaurant and wine shop in Mayfair and the kidnap of the owner, wealthy Russian dissident Evgeny Chichvarkin. They are the first defendants to be convicted of offences under the National Security Act 2023, designed to thwart attacks in the UK by hostile foreign states. Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb adjourned sentencing until a date to be fixed in the autumn. Moment flames engulf car outside Keir Starmer's home as man arrested over 'arson' attack on TWO properties linked to PM

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store