Select committee: Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee
Conclusion 9
Eighth Report - Post Office and Horizon - Compensation: interim report
Published 17 Feb 2022
Paragraph 34
Addressed to Department for Business and Trade
Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee Post Office and Horizon All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
We are concerned that a firm involved with the discredited HBOS Reading scandal is involved with the Historical Shortfall Scheme, and that the Post Office Ltd. (POL) CEO was unaware of the issues surrounding the HBOS compensation scheme. Though Herbert Smith Freehills may have experience in establishing such schemes we are not reassured by the Minister or the POL CEO’s arguments that the issues associated with the HBOS scheme do not necessarily question their role in the Historical Shortfall Scheme.
From: Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Committee, Eighth Report - Post Office and Horizon - Compensation: interim report (HC 1129), paragraph 34, 17 February 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 27 April 2022 (deadline 17 April 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government accepts several of the Committee's recommendations on transparency and the Historical Shortfall Scheme, but does not propose to set up the recommended new independent body for wrongly convicted postmasters.
- On the 555 group litigants, the government says it "will make funding available" so they are "not financially disadvantaged" by litigating, and will announce the results of informal consultation to Parliament "in the coming weeks".
- On an independent body, it is "concerned that setting up such a body would take significant time". It is instead working with existing bodies such as the CCRC, and has encouraged the Post Office to appoint an intermediary body.
- It "accepts" the recommendation on monthly updates on payments, to be published on the Post Office website, with the range of final settlement amounts released only once "a critical mass of settlements has been reached" for privacy reasons.
- On targets for Historical Shortfall Scheme offers, it accepts the recommendation but suggests BEIS updates on oversight actions "on a quarterly, rather than monthly basis".