The government is ‘looking at’ the possibility of exonerating all postmasters involved in the Horizon scandal.
More than 700 Post Office branch managers were handed criminal convictions after faulty accounting software made it appear as though money was missing from their outlets.
The issue has been brought back into the spotlight following a drama series, Mr Bates vs the Post Office, which has been broadcast this week – and the Met have confirmed the Post Office is now under criminal investigation days after the programme aired.
Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme this morning, Rishi Sunak said the justice secretary was ‘looking at’ exonerating all postmasters involved in the scandal.
Asked if the government would remove the Post Office’s ability to investigate and prosecute, he said: ‘The justice secretary is looking at the things that you’ve described, it wouldn’t be right to pre-empt that process, obviously there’s legal complexity in all of those things but he is looking at exactly those areas.
‘Everyone has been shocked by watching what they have done over the past few days and beyond and it is an appalling miscarriage of justice.
Toby Jones (front) plays Alan Bates in the Mr Bates vs the Post Office drama (Picture: ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
‘Obviously it’s something that happened in the 90s but actually seeing it and hearing about it again just shows what an appalling miscarriages of justice it is for everyone affected and it’s important that those people now get the justice they deserve, and that’s what the compensation schemes are about.
‘The government has paid out about £150 million to thousands of people already.
‘Of course we want to get the money to the people as quickly as possible, that’s why there are interim payments of up to, I think, £600,000 that can be made.
‘There are three different schemes available and for anyone affected they should come forward.’
Meanwhile, victims of the Horizon scandal have been ‘traumatised’ and say it’s been ‘like a war’ to try and get the compensation they deserve.
Lee Castleton is a former sub-postmaster who went bankrupt after being pursued through the courts and ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of pounds.
He said: ‘The victims are traumatised. It has been a long time of 25 years and £135 million has been paid to some of the victims, but we have had £150 million-plus paid to lawyers.
‘These lawyers are putting lots of pressure and it is difficult. The schemes are difficult.
‘We are just normal run-of-the-mill people. We have legal people with us but it is so difficult and it is like a war.
‘Why would anybody put the Post Office and DBT (the Department for Business and Trade) in charge of recompensing the victims?’