Source · Select Committees · Business and Trade Committee
Third Report - Post Office and Horizon redress: Instruction to deliver
Business and Trade Committee
HC 477
Published 7 March 2024
Recommendations
2
Rejected
Para 8
Remove Post Office from redress delivery and establish an independent intermediary for sub-postmasters.
Recommendation
The Government must immediately remove the Post Office from any involvement in delivering redress for sub-postmasters and the Government should set out to the Committee how it proposes to deliver swift and effective redress for sub-postmasters, and in what legally …
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Government Response Summary
The government rejects the recommendation to immediately remove the Post Office from redress delivery, stating decisions are already independent and such a move would cause significant delays and costs. It also asserts postmasters already have access to legal and expert assistance, rejecting a new intermediary.
Department for Business and Trade
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3
Rejected
Para 14
Introduce legal timeframes in legislation to deliver sub-postmaster redress and simplify evidential requirements.
Recommendation
To correct the abject failure to deliver timely redress for sub-postmasters, the Government must include in its forthcoming legislation legal timeframes to deliver redress to sub-postmasters. Those targets should include binding timeframes for each stage of a compensation claim, with …
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Government Response Summary
The government rejects implementing legal timeframes and financial penalties, asserting that initial offers are already timely and penalties would not speed up the process. Instead, it details existing efforts and new financial incentives, such as the £600k fixed offer and top-up payments, to encourage earlier submission of claims.
Department for Business and Trade
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4
Accepted in Part
Require Post Office full disclosures and introduce independent appeals mechanism for sub-postmasters.
Recommendation
To ensure that offers of redress are fast and fair, the Government must: (Paragraph 16) a) Require full disclosures by the Post Office of the information needed to submit full and fair claims within legally binding timeframes; b) publish a …
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Government Response Summary
The government rejects a standardized damages tariff and a blanket removal of the legal expenses cap, citing existing measures or unsuitability, while deferring a decision on allowing settled claims to be revisited and introducing an independent appeals mechanism, and cross-referencing point (a).
Department for Business and Trade
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