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Latest
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Statutory Inquiry
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Ombudsman
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Parliament
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Misconceptions
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The Justice For Subpostmaster Alliance (JFSA) was established with the aim of exposing the failures of Post Office, its Board, its management and its Horizon computer system, you can read more about us here. This it achieved in its historic Group Litigation court case victories during 2018 & 2019 which burst through years of deceit, lying and cover-up enabling many others to then seek the justice they had been denied.
To date, much of the appalling behaviour of Post Office has been revealed through various channels and more has yet to be exposed through other investigations already underway. However, the one remaining goal for the JFSA is to achieve the financial redress the original victims are rightfully owed in order to return them to the position they would have been in had Post Office not destroyed their lives. Whilst the small percentage of the original group who had received convictions were provided with avenues to seek redress after the Court of Appeal overturned their convictions, the bulk of the group, numbering 492, had been left with very little after paying all the costs associated with the court case from the settlement amount it had received from Post Office.
So following considerable pressure being brought to bear in Westminster for the 492 to receive the financial redress they are due, on 22 March 2022 Paul Scully, who was then the Minister for Postal Affairs, made a statement in the Commons......."the Chancellor announced today that we are making funds available to ensure that those in the group litigation order group [the 492] are not financially disadvantaged by the decision to litigate against the Post Office. The GLO group will now be able to access the same levels of compensation as its non-GLO peers." He then went on to say ....."and we want this compensation to be paid as promptly as possible. We will be writing to the Justice For Subpostmasters Alliance to consult it about the scheme’s operations, and I am meeting representatives of the JFSA on 30 March to discuss these proposals. We will set target dates for compensation awards in the light of our discussions with them. It will not be a long and formal consultation. It will aid decisions on the approach, and I will then inform the House of our plans to deliver that just compensation, which these people so richly deserve."
At the time of this update, it is over 15 months since the March 2022 statement to the House and not one of 492 has received the full compensation they were promised, yet the scheme has to close and all payments have to be completed by 7 August 2024. In fact when a number of the GLO 492 group met Grant Shapps, who was then Secretary of State for BEIS and Kevin Hollinrake, the Minister with the responsibility for Post Office, in Westminster at the start of December 2022, they had both expressed to the group that they wanted to see most victims paid by Christmas. True, they didn’t state which Christmas, but all doubted they meant Christmas 2025 or 2026, which seems to be where the scheme is now heading, despite the March 2022 assurance that “we want this compensation to be paid as promptly as possible.”
And whilst the scheme, which presently seems to be dying at the hands of bureaucracy and civil servants, continues to limp on, more of the outrageous antics of Post Office continue to be exposed in the media and at the statutory inquiry into Post Office and its Horizon system. There can’t be many people left in the country who have not heard about the years of incompetent management at Post Office when executives seemed more interested in milking the business for everything they could get rather than looking after the interests of the Subpostmaster. Yet the gravy train still seems to keep rolling on, with bonuses galore equalling their very generous salaries. But why is all this happening, simple, because its sole shareholder HMG has not yet cleared out the Board and its executive despite those in this structure being the root cause of the inhumanity Post Office heaped on Subpostmasters year after year.
The sole purpose of the JFSA is to continue its campaign until the 555 have received the financial redress they are due and have been promised.
To date, much of the appalling behaviour of Post Office has been revealed through various channels and more has yet to be exposed through other investigations already underway. However, the one remaining goal for the JFSA is to achieve the financial redress the original victims are rightfully owed in order to return them to the position they would have been in had Post Office not destroyed their lives. Whilst the small percentage of the original group who had received convictions were provided with avenues to seek redress after the Court of Appeal overturned their convictions, the bulk of the group, numbering 492, had been left with very little after paying all the costs associated with the court case from the settlement amount it had received from Post Office.
So following considerable pressure being brought to bear in Westminster for the 492 to receive the financial redress they are due, on 22 March 2022 Paul Scully, who was then the Minister for Postal Affairs, made a statement in the Commons......."the Chancellor announced today that we are making funds available to ensure that those in the group litigation order group [the 492] are not financially disadvantaged by the decision to litigate against the Post Office. The GLO group will now be able to access the same levels of compensation as its non-GLO peers." He then went on to say ....."and we want this compensation to be paid as promptly as possible. We will be writing to the Justice For Subpostmasters Alliance to consult it about the scheme’s operations, and I am meeting representatives of the JFSA on 30 March to discuss these proposals. We will set target dates for compensation awards in the light of our discussions with them. It will not be a long and formal consultation. It will aid decisions on the approach, and I will then inform the House of our plans to deliver that just compensation, which these people so richly deserve."
At the time of this update, it is over 15 months since the March 2022 statement to the House and not one of 492 has received the full compensation they were promised, yet the scheme has to close and all payments have to be completed by 7 August 2024. In fact when a number of the GLO 492 group met Grant Shapps, who was then Secretary of State for BEIS and Kevin Hollinrake, the Minister with the responsibility for Post Office, in Westminster at the start of December 2022, they had both expressed to the group that they wanted to see most victims paid by Christmas. True, they didn’t state which Christmas, but all doubted they meant Christmas 2025 or 2026, which seems to be where the scheme is now heading, despite the March 2022 assurance that “we want this compensation to be paid as promptly as possible.”
And whilst the scheme, which presently seems to be dying at the hands of bureaucracy and civil servants, continues to limp on, more of the outrageous antics of Post Office continue to be exposed in the media and at the statutory inquiry into Post Office and its Horizon system. There can’t be many people left in the country who have not heard about the years of incompetent management at Post Office when executives seemed more interested in milking the business for everything they could get rather than looking after the interests of the Subpostmaster. Yet the gravy train still seems to keep rolling on, with bonuses galore equalling their very generous salaries. But why is all this happening, simple, because its sole shareholder HMG has not yet cleared out the Board and its executive despite those in this structure being the root cause of the inhumanity Post Office heaped on Subpostmasters year after year.
The sole purpose of the JFSA is to continue its campaign until the 555 have received the financial redress they are due and have been promised.
The Statutory Inquiry
It is a pointless exercise to repeat all the details surrounding the Inquiry here, for further details and the latest news from the 'Post Office is incredibly guilty Horizon IT Inquiry', visit www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk/
Whilst the JFSA is not a Core Participant nor taking part in the Inquiry, it will provide evidence and statements when and if required by Sir Wyn Williams, the Chair of the Inquiry.
It is a pointless exercise to repeat all the details surrounding the Inquiry here, for further details and the latest news from the 'Post Office is incredibly guilty Horizon IT Inquiry', visit www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk/
Whilst the JFSA is not a Core Participant nor taking part in the Inquiry, it will provide evidence and statements when and if required by Sir Wyn Williams, the Chair of the Inquiry.
The Ombudsman
"Although Post Office Ltd is 100% owned by the Government, the company operates at arm’s length as an independent commercial business"
(Hansard 9 July 2013, Jo Swinson, Minister for Postal Affairs)
Just one example of the mantra used time after time which is a lie, a lie perpetuated year after year
because no Minister or anyone at HMG ever bothered to seek the truth.
because no Minister or anyone at HMG ever bothered to seek the truth.
The JFSA Complaint of Maladministration by BEIS & HMG to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Following the JFSA running a CrowdJustice fundraising campaign in 2020, on 1 December 2020 the JFSA submitted a complaint of maladministration against BEIS and HMG to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
The complaint of maladministration to the Parliamentary Ombudsman has been made on behalf of the 555 victims of Post Office who brought the High Court litigation action against it which so far has cost them £46m to expose. It was a legal action that would never have been needed had HMG carried out the duties it was charged to undertake.
It is important for you to remember that unlike in the court, we don't have to provide all the evidence that proves our case. All we need to provide is enough evidence to demonstrate to the Ombudsman that there is a case that needs fully investigating. Hopefully, having read the complaint and looked at the evidence provided so far, you will agree we have more than met that requirement.
We are very grateful to all those who supported the victims group CrowdJustice fundraising campaign.
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The Complaint of Maladministration -
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Parliament
Over the years, the group has been campaigning for Post Office and its Horizon computer system to be investigated. Many Parliamentarians, across all parties in both Houses, continue to support the victims group in their search for justice.
Most MPs will have at least one of the victims in their constituency and many have tried to get Post Office to address the serious concerns being expressed about Horizon, but year after year, Post Office's senior executives have fobbed off the politicians with lies and reassurances of how 'robust' the system is.
Many of the occasions that the issue has been raised in Parliament can be viewed on YouTube
Over the years, the group has been campaigning for Post Office and its Horizon computer system to be investigated. Many Parliamentarians, across all parties in both Houses, continue to support the victims group in their search for justice.
Most MPs will have at least one of the victims in their constituency and many have tried to get Post Office to address the serious concerns being expressed about Horizon, but year after year, Post Office's senior executives have fobbed off the politicians with lies and reassurances of how 'robust' the system is.
Many of the occasions that the issue has been raised in Parliament can be viewed on YouTube
Misconceptions
After many years, a number of inaccuracies have crept into the story about the victims of Post Office and its Horizon computer system. In fairness to the media it is a complex and multi-faceted issue and below we try to correct some of the more blatantly incorrect statements that continue to be made. More will follow.
After many years, a number of inaccuracies have crept into the story about the victims of Post Office and its Horizon computer system. In fairness to the media it is a complex and multi-faceted issue and below we try to correct some of the more blatantly incorrect statements that continue to be made. More will follow.
Royal Mail is Post Office
Post Office has been a completely different entity since 2012 when the Royal Mail was sold off and privatised.
Post Office Limited is still owned by HMG which is the sole shareholder of the business. A breakdown of this relationship can be found in the JFSA complaint to the Ombudsman and it is the failure of HMG to undertake its statutory duties with regard to this relationship which has led to the JFSA complaint of maladministration being submitted.
Post Office has been a completely different entity since 2012 when the Royal Mail was sold off and privatised.
Post Office Limited is still owned by HMG which is the sole shareholder of the business. A breakdown of this relationship can be found in the JFSA complaint to the Ombudsman and it is the failure of HMG to undertake its statutory duties with regard to this relationship which has led to the JFSA complaint of maladministration being submitted.
Post Office Staff, Employees of Post Office, Post Office Managers
These are incorrect descriptions of 99% of the victims involved - they are all, or were, Subpostmasters or Postmistresses.
Apart from the very few Crown Offices left where the staff are direct employees of Post Office Limited, the main bulk of post offices are run by self-employed independent business people who operate a post office as agency. They in turn employ their own staff to work as counter assistant or in some cases managers but these people are contracted to the agent i.e. the Subpostmaster, not Post Office Limited.
A Subpostmaster does not earn a salary from Post Office Limited, but instead the post office branch of that agent receives an office remuneration based upon business turnover.
There are instances where post offices are found in larger chains e.g. Smiths or McColls but the poat office staff are usually direct employees of those chains.
These are incorrect descriptions of 99% of the victims involved - they are all, or were, Subpostmasters or Postmistresses.
Apart from the very few Crown Offices left where the staff are direct employees of Post Office Limited, the main bulk of post offices are run by self-employed independent business people who operate a post office as agency. They in turn employ their own staff to work as counter assistant or in some cases managers but these people are contracted to the agent i.e. the Subpostmaster, not Post Office Limited.
A Subpostmaster does not earn a salary from Post Office Limited, but instead the post office branch of that agent receives an office remuneration based upon business turnover.
There are instances where post offices are found in larger chains e.g. Smiths or McColls but the poat office staff are usually direct employees of those chains.
Convicted of Theft and/or False Accounting
The majority of Subpostmasters were never prosecuted, and in the cases that were, it was mainly for false accounting which has now been recognised as being due to flawed software, not theft.
If you take for example the 555 in the original victims group which brought the GLO legal action, only 52 of the group were convicted and very few of those were convicted of theft, the majority was for false accounting. There were 14 of the 555 group who were prosecuted but found not guilty, however the bulk of the group, close to 500, had their contracts terminated for a raft of contractual reasons (a contract later found to be unfair) and in some cases without any reason.
However it has emerged that, according to Post Office there are around 736 unsafe convictions including the 118 already known of by the CCRC of which 72 have had their convictions quashed so far.
Further to both those categories there are another 2400 Subpostmaster who have applied to the Historic Shortfalls Scheme to recover monies they had paid to Post Office due to claims made against them using Horizon data, which is now know to be flawed.
The majority of Subpostmasters were never prosecuted, and in the cases that were, it was mainly for false accounting which has now been recognised as being due to flawed software, not theft.
If you take for example the 555 in the original victims group which brought the GLO legal action, only 52 of the group were convicted and very few of those were convicted of theft, the majority was for false accounting. There were 14 of the 555 group who were prosecuted but found not guilty, however the bulk of the group, close to 500, had their contracts terminated for a raft of contractual reasons (a contract later found to be unfair) and in some cases without any reason.
However it has emerged that, according to Post Office there are around 736 unsafe convictions including the 118 already known of by the CCRC of which 72 have had their convictions quashed so far.
Further to both those categories there are another 2400 Subpostmaster who have applied to the Historic Shortfalls Scheme to recover monies they had paid to Post Office due to claims made against them using Horizon data, which is now know to be flawed.