A report into the Post Office Horizon scandal “shows the full scale of the horror” unleashed on people just trying to do a day’s work, a former subpostmistress has said.
Jo Hamilton was falsely prosecuted for a shortfall of £36,000 at her Post Office branch in South Warnborough, Hampshire, in 2006.
A first tranche of the public inquiry’s final report into the scandal, published on Tuesday, laid bare the devastating consequences for victims and their families, from police investigations to convictions and imprisonment.
Between 1999 and 2015, approximately 1,000 subpostmasters were prosecuted after faulty Horizon accounting software made it look as though money was missing from their accounts.
The report said 59 victims of the scandal contemplated suicide with 10 attempting to take their own lives.
Inquiry chairman Sir Wyn Williams said there was a “real possibility” 13 people took their own lives as a result of the suffering they endured during the scandal.
Other details in the report detailed impacts including bankruptcy and relationship breakdowns.
Speaking following the report’s publication, Ms Hamilton – who was made an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) for services to justice – said it is “really important”.
She added: “It shows the full scale of the horror that they unleashed on us. You know, we were just decent people trying to do a day’s work for our community.”
Sir Wyn, who said around 10,000 people are eligible to submit compensation claims, urged the Government to establish a public body to devise, administer and deliver compensation to those wronged by authorities.
Ms Hamilton said that was a “necessary” recommendation which she would like to see implemented immediately.
“The Government shouldn’t be anywhere near this because they actually owned the Post Office which perpetrated the crime and they must have been aware what was going on. So I think they should be taken out of it altogether.”
Asked about her hopes for the future, she said: “I have a sneaky feeling that this will run right through next year, because that’s the way things are, but I really hope not, because so many people are dying.
“You know, we’ve lost, I think 350 is the number, and 100 of the GLO (Group Litigation Order) group aren’t here any more, and there’s still 138 of them to be paid which is incredible.”
Meanwhile, Chris Head, who became the youngest subpostmaster at the age of 18 when he took over the branch in West Boldon near Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, it is “a great day” but added that he is concerned about how the Government will respond to the report.
Mr Head told the PA news agency: “It’s a great day for everybody being here listening to it and obviously being vindicated.
“What we’ve always been saying, the problem is – will it be acted upon? And that is a huge concern because it’ll take the Government many months to respond to these recommendations.”
He was falsely accused of stealing more than £80,000 from his branch in 2006 before the criminal case against him was dropped.
Mr Head, who has campaigned to help other victims get compensation, said the Post Office “hasn’t addressed the wrongs of the past”.
He said the Post Office needs to be “put right” for current postmasters but added: “You can’t do that until the problems of the past are fully redressed, because there’s no trust.”
Mr Head said: “I think you can’t get closure until people are held accountable for their actions. But at the same time that is so slow.
“So what we need to do in the meantime is get this redress paid out to people, get it as full and fair as what has been promised, and allow people the opportunity to try and rebuild their lives while that accountability process takes place.”
Seema Misra, a former subpostmistress who was eight weeks pregnant with her second child when she was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment in 2010, said the inquiry report is “thoughtful” but that the compensation schemes need to be sorted as soon as possible.
She has been campaigning for Horizon scandal victims since having a conviction overturned in April 2021, in which she had been accused of stealing £70,000 from her post office in West Byfleet, Surrey.
She told PA: “This scandal will stay with us for the rest of our lives.
“It should haunt the people who were behind the scandal.”
Ms Misra, who was made an OBE in the New Year Honours, said many people who were wrongfully convicted have died without compensation.
“It’s like fighting against time,” she said.
“It needs to be sorted sooner rather than later.
“You’re losing more and more people.
“The Government should do something about it and get it sorted soon.”
