The first report on the findings from an inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal has been published.
The inquiry revealed for the first time on Tuesday July 8 the full extent of trauma the scandal created and is the first tranche of the long-awaited final report.
More than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongfully prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 in what has been dubbed 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 accounts.
Sub-postmasters’ lives were destroyed, with some bankrupted by legal action and sent to prison.
Sir Wyn Williams, the chair of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, said at the release of the report today: "Throughout the whole length of the inquiry, I have received written evidence and other sources of information about the nature and scale of the human impact.
"The picture which has emerged is profoundly disturbing."
Here are some of the key findings from the inquiry report
It left many feeling suicidal
The report found that the impact on lives was “disastrous” and left many wanting to take their own lives.
The inquiry heard harrowing experiences from sub-postmasters who were incorrectly accused of wrongdoing and the report goes into detail about the level of suffering many went through.
There had already been stories of two sub-postmasters who had died by suicide due to the Horizon scandal – Michael Mann and Martin Griffiths - but the reports now says that more than 13 people may have killed themselves as a result of the scandal. A further 59 people told the inquiry that they had contemplated suicide at various points.
Families have said that six sub-postmasters and seven people who were not sub-postmasters have died by suicide, after Horizon showed "illusory" shortfalls in branch accounts.
One sub-postmaster told the inquiry: "The mental stress was so great for me that I had a mental breakdown and turned to alcohol as I sunk further into depression. I attempted suicide on several occasions and was admitted to mental health institutions twice."
Inquiry chair Sir Wyn Williams wrote in the report that the impact is "disastrous" and should not be underestimated.
The Post Office knew the system was flawed
A recurring question throughout the inquiry was how much Post Office bosses knew about the system having faults.
Sir Wyn was very robust in his initial response, but this is expected to be covered in more detail in the next wave of reports.
In this report he states that he believes senior and not so senior people in the Post Office "knew, or at the very least should have known, that legacy Horizon was capable of error".
"Yet, for all practical purposes, throughout the lifetime of legacy Horizon, the Post Office maintained the fiction that its data was always accurate,” he said.
Legacy Horizon was the version in use until 2010. After 2010, the next version of Horizon also contained "bugs, errors and defects".
Sir Wyn says: "I am satisfied that a number of employees of Fujitsu and the Post Office knew that this was so”.
Compensation has not been adequate
There have been a number of settlements and compensation schemes for sub-postmasters so far, and while some have accepted the amounts offered, others have been less than impressed with the offerings.
Sir Wyn said three of the compensation schemes have been "bedevilled with unjustifiable delays" and redress has not been delivered promptly.
The inquiry found that the Post Office and its legal advisers have been "unnecessarily adversarial" in making initial offers for compensation, driving down the level of eventual financial settlements.
The report recommends three things when it comes to compensation:
- A mechanism to deliver redress "to persons who have been wronged by public bodies", should be established;
- Free legal advice should be extended to claimants on one of the schemes – the Horizon Shortfall Scheme; and
- Close family members of people who have "been most adversely affected by Horizon" should be compensated.
It estimates there are currently 10,000 eligible claimants in three compensation schemes, and “that number is likely to rise by at least hundreds, if not more”.
Restorative justice is a must
The report stated that a “programme for restorative justice” is a must and should take place sooner rather than later.
It states that by October 31 this year the government, Fujitsu and the Post Office should publish a report on a programme for restorative justice.
This would mean a process of people affected by the scandal would meet with representatives of Fujitsu and the Post Office "so they can discuss the impact, take responsibility, and work collaboratively to make amends".
Victims must also be given access to expert help
Another recommendation says that all of those due compensation must be given funded access to legal advice to see if the offer is fair.
The report states: “All claimants in Horizon Shortfall Scheme (HSS) shall be entitled to obtain legal advice funded by the Department prior to choosing between accepting the Fixed Sum Offer or seeking financial redress which is assessed.
“Any claimant who opts to have a claim assessed may decide to accept the Fixed Sum Offer at any time thereafter up to and including the date which is three calendar months following the receipt by the claimant of a first assessed offer.”
