Hi All,
It has been a very busy two weeks since the inquiry got underway on the 14th February. As I am sure you will all have seen there has been wall to wall media coverage for the very first time, across every news channel, front pages of newspapers and radio broadcasts. The media exposure was relentless until the war started a few days ago where things have shifted to that event.
Some of the media coverage can be found below, the latest in the Sunday Times exposing most of those who could have played a part and be responsible for this scandal. The first being a follow up series on File on 4, it is a hard listen but essential all the same :-
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/post-office-scandal-will-justice-ever-be-delivered-pqksgjbjn
https://news.sky.com/story/post-office-horizon-scandal-victims-battle-for-justice-12545268
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/wheres-the-outcry-over-post-office-scandal-kgcwt8lkc
Watching the brave people give evidence to the inquiry these past two weeks has been extremely difficult. The stories are harrowing and the trauma the Post Office has put these people and their families through can only be described as evil. I urge you to take the time to watch these testimonies live and see for yourself the ordeal people were put through over a 20 year period. It will make you extremely angry the way this has been covered up and I am certain you will need a box of tissues at the ready.
You can read all the testimonies below and the second link is to the recordings of the evidence at the inquiry to date :-
https://www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk/evidence
https://www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk/hearings
Simply scroll to the day you want to watch and click to see the live video recording.
Now to some potentially good news. You will remember the last update I had co-ordinated with my MP Kate Osborne to write to the Secretary of State demanding FULL compensation for the 555 that exposed this horrific scandal in the first place. The response came a few days later and as we expected it referred to the 'full and final' settlement speech we are all used to. The Early Day Motion reached 121 signatures, the biggest EDM of the current session by a long way which shows the strength of feeling in the house. However on the 24th February Andrew Bridgen MP secured an Urgent Question in the House of Commons regarding compensation for our group. His statement to the minister was powerful and finally we had an acknowledgement that the settlement and compensation received so far was unfair and had been pushed through by the Post Office under considerable pressure and cost (to put it lightly!!). Paul Scully MP the minister responsible for the Post Office was sympathetic and his tone has definitely changed towards the group. He said he will be working at speed and hopes to return to the despatch box within days with 'good news'. I think David Davis MP summed up pretty well when he intervened to say I understand the minister is trapped between the jaws of the treasury and the Whitehall lawyers and if he cannot sort this out we in this house will find a way to instruct the government to do it. That is the ultimate warning, MP's will find a way via legislation or bill to force the governments hand if they do not act soon. I have been critical but fair of Minister Paul Scully for a while now but for the first time it appears he finally gets it and is working on a resolution that is acceptable to us all. You can see the Select Committee's report by Darren Jones MP on compensation for the group and also you can watch the debate live from the house below, it is only around 15-20 minutes long :-
https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/6149ce89-ba29-47e1-8b99-37fd0fb1b4e4?in=10:31:50
So hopefully as the minister said we will have 'news' within days....lets see