Post Office minister Gareth Thomas has confirmed that the government is considering a separate scheme to provide redress to the families of subpostmasters affected by the Post Office scandal.
Acknowledging that the Horizon scandal had “knock-on effect” on the children of affected subpostmasters, Gareth said, "I have asked officials in my department to consider a government redress scheme for family members and will provide an update in the coming months."
Fujitsu, which recently agreed to begin negotiations over its contribution towards the costs, will feature in these plans, as officials at the Department for Business and Trade look into gaps in current redress schemes, including the treatment of family members.
If this goes ahead, this will add another redress scheme to the present three for subpostmasters affected by Horizon problems, and one in the making for those affected by problems with the Capture software, which was used in Post Office branches before Horizon’s introduction in 1999.
The Lost Chances for Subpostmaster Children support group, which was set up to bring together the children of Post Office scandal victims to demand support and redress for their suffering, also called for any person affected by the treatment of their parents by the Post Office to register their interest.
The Post Office minister met with the Lost Chances group representatives on March 19. Group chair Rebekah Foot described the meeting as “a positive and productive one”.
“We felt truly heard, as the minister approached our concerns with honesty and compassion. It was clear that they understand the challenges faced by children and families affected by this issue, and they are aware of the significant gap in government support for these groups,” Computer Weekly quoted Foot as saying.
“The government is keen to engage with us as a group, recognising that we represent a significant number of victims,” she said.
The Lost Chances group was set up by Katie Downey, daughter of former subpostmaster Tony Downey, to highlight the issues that children and wider families have suffered as a result of Post Office and Fujitsu malevolence.
Lost Chances’ Foot told Computer Weekly, “We will continue to advocate for our members and remain dedicated to expanding our group, working to find and support others who are affected by this issue.
"Additionally, we are determined to push forward with talks with the government regarding how they plan to support the children affected by the Post Office scandal, ensuring their needs are not overlooked.”
Earlier this month, Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds met chiefs for Fujitsu in Tokyo to begin talks over the cost of redress for victims of the Horizon Scandal.
As part of a two-day visit to Japan, the Business Secretary met the company’s Chief Executive Takahito Tokita and Paul Patterson, Director of Fujitsu Services Ltd, and welcomed their commitments on compensation.
Reynolds said, "We must never forget the lives ruined by the Horizon scandal and no amount of redress can take away that pain. But justice can and must be done.
"This government is determined to hold those responsible to account, and will continue to make rapid progress on compensation and redress.
"Since we took office, we have more than tripled the total amount of redress paid to victims, and today we took another significant step towards justice."
