Public Inquiry

Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry

Status: Ongoing Chair: Sir Wyn Williams Established: Jun 2021 Commissioned by: Department for Business and Trade

Public inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, examining how more than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted based on faulty Fujitsu software between 1999 and 2015.

Response breakdown

27 recommendations total

70%

22%

19 (70%) — Accepted

6 (22%) — Accepted in Part

1 (4%) — Not Accepted

1 (4%) — Under Review

Data last updated: 20 May 2026 · Source · Data verified: 18 Jun 2026 (Claude)

Key facts

Duration (ongoing): 5 years, 2 months Total cost: £80m Witnesses: 114 Hearing days: 96 Statements: 303

Reports & milestones

Reports

17 Jul 2023 8 tracked recs First Interim Report: Compensation · Tracked recommendations · PDF

08 Jul 2025 19 tracked recs Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry: Final Report · Tracked recommendations · PDF

Timeline

19 Feb 2020 Inquiry Establish… Initially non-statutory inquiry established. · Source

26 Feb 2020 Inquiry announced The Prime Minister committed to an independent inquiry into the Horizon IT system, established on a non-statutory basis. · Source

01 Sep 2020 Chair Appointed Sir Wyn Williams appointed as Chair.

01 Jun 2021 Converted to stat… Inquiry converted to statutory public inquiry with power to compel witnesses.

14 Feb 2022 Human impact hear… Human impact hearings commenced.

15 May 2023 Phase 4 Hearings Phase 4 examining Fujitsu's role began.

17 Jul 2023 Interim report on… Sir Wyn Williams laid before Parliament his first interim report, on the compensation schemes. · Source

08 Jan 2024 Phase 6 Hearings Phase 6 examining Post Office Ltd began.

Show all 12 milestones

13 May 2024 Phase 7 Hearings Phase 7 examining Government, UKGI and Royal Mail Group.

17 Dec 2024 Hearings conclude Closing statements ended the oral hearings, which ran across Phases 1 to 7 from February 2022. · Source

30 Jun 2025 Final Report Expe… Chair Sir Wyn Williams expected to publish final report. · Source

08 Jul 2025 Final report Volu… Volume 1 of the final report, on the human impact of the scandal and redress, was laid before … · Source

Recommendations

8 shown (filtered)

Code	Recommendation	Addressed to	Response
POH-IR1-1	Allow Advisory Board to monitor individual cases and make full and fair monitor… The Horizon Compensation Advisory Board should not be prevented from monitoring individual cases in which compensation has been or is to be …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted in Part	View →
POH-IR1-2	Publish Advisory Board meeting reports within 21 days The Horizon Compensation Advisory Board shall produce written reports in respect of each of their meetings in relation to each of the …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted	View →
POH-IR1-3	Advise Minister and Post Office on full and fair compensation at three monthly … The Horizon Compensation Advisory Board shall, as part of its advisory role, consider whether, in its view, full and fair compensation is …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted in Part	View →
POH-IR1-4	Increase Advisory Board membership if needed for capacity If the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board as constituted consider it necessary, the number of persons appointed to the Board should be increased …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted	View →
POH-IR1-5	Seek court directions to resolve the DBT and Moore UK difference on bankrupt ap… DBT shall take such steps as are necessary within 28 days of the date hereof, to seek appropriate directions under section 306 …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted	View →
POH-IR1-6	Publish proposals for equal tax treatment of compensation payments DBT shall publish in as much detail as it reasonably can and as soon as it reasonably can, its proposals for ensuring …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted	View →
POH-IR1-7	Legislate to allow GLOS compensation payments after 7 August 2024 if necessary HM Government shall bring forward and use its best endeavours to ensure that legislation is enacted so as to allow payments of …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted in Part	View →
POH-IR1-8	Set agreed closing date for Horizon Shortfall Scheme applications No applications for compensation to HSS shall be entertained after such date as shall be agreed by the Minister/ DBT, the Post …	Department for Business and Trade	Accepted in Part	View →

Parliamentary activity

34 mentions since Jan 2022

2 debates 26 questions

11 Nov 2025 Written Question Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry
Dr Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat)

13 Oct 2025 Written Question Fujitsu: Contracts
John Milne (Liberal Democrat)

17 Jul 2025 Hansard Debate Post Office Horizon Inquiry: Volume 1

14 Jul 2025 Written Question Procurement: Standards
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour)

View all 34 mentions →

Costs

Total: £80,000,000

Period	Total	Inquiry legal	CP legal	Source
Mar 2026 (cum.)	£80,000,000	£24,455,048	£15,904,255	link
Mar 2025	£26,017,032	£8,738,949	£5,202,243	link
Mar 2024	£26,770,510	£8,373,766	£6,150,587	link
Mar 2023	£18,491,383	£5,717,654	£3,905,857	link
Mar 2022	£3,087,287	£1,492,280	£645,569	link
Mar 2021	£360,345	£132,399	—	link