Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Latest Stories

Independent inquiry launched into Post Office Horizon scandal

The government has announced retired High Court judge Sir Wyn Williams as the chair of an independent inquiry into the Horizon accounting scandal at Post Office.

The non-statutory inquiry, announced in June, follows a settlement of £57.75 million in December 2019 between Post Office and over 550 sub-postmasters who took the network to the court over the Horizon IT system.


The government said the inquiry will establish a clear account of the implementation and failings of Horizon over its lifetime.

“It is essential that we determine precisely what went wrong at the Post Office during this period, so we can ensure the right lessons have been learnt, and establish what must change to make sure this cannot happen again,” Postal Affairs Minister Paul Scully said.

Scully added that the terms of reference for the inquiry have been expanded following feedback from former postmasters since they were first published in June and will ensure it gathers evidence to build on the findings of the High Court judgment.

A week after the settlement, the High Court has ruled in favour of the postmasters. The long-running case dealt with the Post Office’s accusations of stealing by postmasters from their branches which the litigants say are caused by discrepancies in the Horizon system.

In the judgement, Justice Fraser said the Legacy Horizon, which was in use between 2000 and 2010, “was not robust.” On the HNG-X, the earlier version of the Modern Horizon Online, he said its “robustness was questionable, and did not justify the confidence placed in it by the Post Office in terms of its accuracy.”

Sir Wyn, who has over 28 years’ judicial experience, said: “I am determined that the inquiry will provide the forum for a thorough and rigorous examination of all the evidence presented and that a report will be produced which all participants in the Inquiry and the wider public will recognise as having addressed the terms of reference constructively and in detail.”

The inquiry is expected to obtain evidence from Post Office, Horizon developer Fujitsu and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which is the sponsoring department of Post Office.

More for you

Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London

A customer browses clothes inside Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London on, December 17, 2024

Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Brits kindle Christmas spirit with second-hand gifts

Bursting with customers one afternoon the week before Christmas, a second-hand charity shop in London's Marylebone High Street looked even busier than the upscale retailers surrounding it.

One man grabbed two puzzle sets and a giant plush toy as a present for friends, another picked out a notebook for his wife.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Lancashire Mind’s 11th Mental Elf fun run was its biggest and best yet – a sell-out event with more than 400 people running and walking in aid of the mental charity, plus dozens more volunteering to make the day a huge success.

The winter sun shone on Worden Park in Leyland as families gathered for either a 5K course, a 2K run, or a Challenge Yours’Elf distance which saw many people running 10K with the usual running gear replaced with jazzy elf leggings, tinsel and Christmas hats.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale

A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale, on December 13, 2024 in London, England.

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail sales disappoint before Christmas

UK retail sales rose less than expected in the runup to Christmas, according to official data Friday that deals a fresh blow to government hopes of growing the economy.

Separate figures revealed a temporary reprieve for prime minister Keir Starmer, however, as public borrowing fell sharply in November.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sybren Attema, and Betty Eekchaut

Presidents Sybren Attema, FrieslandCampina, and Betty Eekchaut, Milcobel

Yazoo parent FrieslandCampina announces merger with Belgian rival Milcobel

Dutch dairy collective FrieslandCampina has agreed to merge with smaller Belgian rival Milcobel, creating a leading dairy cooperative.

FrieslandCampina, whose brands include Yazoo and Chocomel, said the merger will provide the foundation for a future-oriented organisation that has dairy front and centre for member dairy farmers, employees, consumers, and customers.

Keep ReadingShow less
Retail Shoplifting. Man Stealing In Supermarket
Photo: iStock

Home Office reaffirms commitment to abolish £200 shoplifting threshold

The UK government has pledged stronger measures to combat anti-social behaviour and shoplifting, which it acknowledges as serious crimes that disrupt communities and harm businesses.

Addressing a House of Lords debate on Monday, Home Office minister Lord Hanson detailed plans to abolish the controversial £200 shoplifting threshold and to introduce a new offence for assaults on retail workers.

Keep ReadingShow less