Today I was back in Parliament for an APPG meeting on Post Offices. I attended with my MP Kate Osborne, Marion Fellows MP, Ronnie Cowan MP, Lord Arbuthnot and Lord Hunt. On the agenda was convictions being overturned, financial redress/compensation and the future of the Post Office as a failure to right the wrongs of the past are further damaging the future of the business. We need a renewed focus to deliver justice for all those wronged Sub Postmasters and a clear vision for the future of the network for serving Postmasters & their communities. I am trying to ensure that all MP's, Lords and the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board have the up to date information of the reality on the ground, not just the rhetoric and updates that both Post Office and officials within the Department for Business want you to hear. It is only through this can we effectively challenge the Minister and his department on statements made in the House of Commons and to the public.
I tweeted after the urgent question raised by Marion Fellows MP pictured above, about a response received during the debate by Minister Kevin Hollinrake that there was no evidence of deliberate minimising of claims by the Post Office yet I knew of multiple instances of this happening. Here is the tweet below that received a response from the Minister, and my reply to that :-
#PostOfficeScandal In 2021 I wrote & spoke to @PostOffice CEO Nick Read…also to the then Postal Minister in government about the issues with the HSS scheme that I was witnessing 1st hand whilst assisting claimants. Today @kevinhollinrake said there was no evidence of deliberate minimising of claims yet there are multiple instances of this happening. £100k shortfalls, offered only 1/2 the amount back, £1500 for distress & inconvenience when its clear by law & court awards it should be 15-20 times that 1/2 #MrBatesVsThePostOffice #MrBates
I have another case of shortfalls between 2000-2009 yet the individual only offered repayment of shortfalls between 2006-2009 where records exist because the HSS scheme chose not to apply the average shortfall over 3 years to the previous 6 years….I’m sorry but that is DELIBERATE. The scheme is not fit for purpose, appeal mechanism is wrong, why should people have to appeal/re-apply AGAIN….when we can prove these problems were caused either deliberately or via incompetence….seems to be a theme within @PostOffice & @biztradegovuk 2/2
https://x.com/chrish9070/status/1752130752509075907?s=20
Thanks Chris. As I also said yesterday, we are looking at the recommendations of the Advisory Board and other measures to make sure everyone has received full and fair compensation.
Thank you for replying. I have spoken to them, I know Sir Ross is concerned about time/cost of re-opening all but it simply isn’t fair to ask people to apply/appeal all over again. They should have been treat fairly in the first instance. On the back benches you expressed concern of HSF involvement, there are terrible cases of the mediation tactics. I hope you will consider a fully independent arms length body completely outside the remit of PO and government & get this right once and for all. If I can help at all or share examples more than happy to, similar as I did with Lord Arbuthnot. It is complicated but doable with the right commitment.
It is vital we continue to hold the government, the Minister and Post Office to account. This is a mess that should have been dealt with in full once the High Court case concluded in 2019. Instead we have gone through a further extended attempt to cover up who knew what and when, likely worse still both the Post Office & Government going out of its way to make the delivery of financial redress complicated and I dare say impossible. Is it really too much to ask for the promises made to be actually kept and delivered upon? We all realise accountability will take time, once the inquiry concludes its important work and the MET police start a national investigation. In the meantime we must not allow Post Masters to suffer a moment longer than needed. It is time to instruct an external independent body that is completely outside the remit of the Post Office and government where they can receive and assess claims and then make awards in line with legal principle and past High Court awards. The only job the government should have in this is writing the cheques of the awarded sums to the victims. Once all the facts are on the table from the inquiry the government can negotiate the final contribution from Horizon supplier Fujitsu, who have already said at the Business Select Committee they have a moral responsibility to contribute to the compensation. At the same time we should then have the information of who knew what and when and can proceed to recover any bonuses and pensions that were allocated based on the performance of the Post Office business that was enhanced by the false recovery of money from Sub Postmasters for fictitious shortfalls.
Also today I filmed a piece for Channel 4 that will go out tomorrow (Wednesday 31st January) at 7pm with Alex Thomson. We looked at compensation, all the complex issues surrounding that, my campaigning and supporting of Postmasters and where I am currently at almost 9 years to the day since this scandal first impacted upon me in a major way.
After challenging the offer made to me on the 28th December we are still awaiting a further response on that. I am hoping we are going to see a move on the suggestion I put forward in the last update of an interim payment of 25% of the total claim value submitted into the schemes up to a maximum of £500,000. This would relieve the pressures on individuals whilst the remainder of the claim is fully assessed and claimants are provided with a full offer. It is very clear to me that if they are unwilling to provide a 25% interim offer of the claim value then they have no intention of meeting their promises of returning victims back to the position they would have been in had the scandal not happened. I think we all agree that compensation doesn't begin until people have at least been refunded all their past losses including business value, loss of residential property (if applicable), loss of net earnings and interest on those losses. Only once that has been repaid in full can we start to call any further awards compensation for damages (non pecuniary) for things like stigma/reputational damage, stress & inconvenience, personal injury, harassment (if applicable) and malicious prosecution (if applicable). Some claimants may also have the future loss of earnings depending on individual circumstances.
You may have also seen over the weekend that Post Office Chairman Henry Staunton was removed from his position after only been in the position just over a year. There were conflicting reports that it was by mutual consent and of being sacked by the Department for Business and Trade. I think when you read the statements made it is very clear he was dismissed after concerns about the Horizon Scandal progress, governance issues surrounding Post Office and government shareholder agreements and also the future of the network. They felt he was no longer the man to attempt to steer the sinking ship. There are several pieces but I have included the link to the BBC below :-
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68121257
The last time this position became available in 2022 after the departure of Tim Parker, long time MP turned Lord, James Arbuthnot (pictured far right above) applied for the post and did not even receive an interview. He has said he will not be applying this time around, he told me told he knows his limitations and this is a step too far. He suggested Archie Norman who had turned round Marks & Spencer but he declined saying it would be a full time job not the suggested 2 days a week on the advertisement. Who on earth is going to want to take on this role in such a toxic organisation? More importantly who do you think is the right man for the job?? Please do not suggest me, I have enough on my plate, although I would like to think I would have a no nonsense approach to turning around the culture in the Post Office, ensuring Postmasters receive the full and fair compensation they have been promised and also have a vision of the future for the business. This would be done by harnessing a full banking license, to fill the gap of closing bank branches, better access to cash services, no longer sharing profits with the Bank of Ireland who currently provide Post Office savings and lending products, improving the parcel services on offer and making Post Office the front office of government services both local and national. It would also be imperative we restore a fixed element of pay to cover fixed costs, this was removed under Network Transformation back in 2012-2016 to ensure Postmasters are properly remunerated for the vital work they carry out. Have a listen to Nick Wallis and Lord Arbuthnot speaking to Stephen Nolan on BBC 5 Live 1 hour 5 mins into the program :-
https://.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001vt32
I hear the USA and Australia will air the Mr Bates Vs The Post Office very soon, so this scandal will go global on a much bigger scale than it has already. Lets see what disaster or saga Post Office throw up next for us.....I am sure it won't take long!!