Ongoing
· Chair: Sir Wyn Williams
· Established June 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.
Accepted · No statement from Department for Business and Trade found
Recommended
The Horizon Compensation Advisory Board shall produce written reports in respect of each of their meetings in relation to each of the three schemes and publish the same within 21 days of the date of each meeting.
Since then (summary written by this site)
The Inquiry recommended that Advisory Board meeting reports be published within 21 days. In October 2023, the Department for Business and Trade stated that written reports of board discussions were already published and were issued within a week unless the board agreed otherwise, noting earlier records for the Group Litigation Order Compensation Scheme Advisory Board but not mentioning the three schemes (Department for Business and Trade response, Oct 2023).
Addressed to Department for Business and Trade · Full record
Accepted · No statement from Department for Business and Trade found
Recommended
If the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board as constituted consider it necessary, the number of persons appointed to the Board should be increased so as to ensure that the Board has sufficient capacity to perform the functions set out above.
Since then (summary written by this site)
The Inquiry recommended expanding Horizon Compensation Advisory Board membership if necessary for capacity. In its response published in October 2023, the Department for Business and Trade stated that it would "keep under review the case for expanding the board, in discussion with its current members" (Department for Business and Trade response, Oct 2023).
Addressed to Department for Business and Trade · Full record
Accepted · No statement from Department for Business and Trade found
Recommended
DBT shall take such steps as are necessary within 28 days of the date hereof, to seek appropriate directions under section 306 Insolvency Act 1986 so as to enable a court to resolve the difference of view between DBT and Moore UK and/or it shall take all appropriate steps (including providing appropriate legal funding) so as to enable a sub-postmaster to seek appropriate directions under that section.
Since then (summary written by this site)
The Inquiry asked the Department for Business and Trade to seek directions regarding bankrupt applicants. In October 2023, the department stated that it had instructed counsel to apply for expedited court directions resolving its dispute with Moore UK, and that it would ask for an affected postmaster to be named as an interested party (Department for Business and Trade response, Oct 2023). Its response did not mention providing legal funding for a postmaster to seek directions (Department for Business and Trade response, Oct 2023).
Addressed to Department for Business and Trade · Full record
Accepted · No statement from Department for Business and Trade found
Recommended
DBT shall publish in as much detail as it reasonably can and as soon as it reasonably can, its proposals for ensuring that applicants to all schemes are treated equally and fairly so far as their liability to or exemption from income tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax is concerned as the same relates to compensation payments under each scheme.
Since then (summary written by this site)
The Inquiry asked the government to publish proposals ensuring equal tax treatment across compensation schemes. In October 2023, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) stated that payments under the Group Litigation Order (GLO) scheme and for overturned convictions were exempt from income tax, National Insurance contributions, and capital gains tax, while tax-exempt top-up payments were arranged for the Horizon Shortfall Scheme (HSS), with all three schemes exempt from inheritance tax (Department for Business and Trade response, Oct 2023).
Addressed to Department for Business and Trade · Full record
Written QuestionHouse of CommonsDr Al Pinkerton · Liberal Democrat
Asked: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with the Post Office Horizon Inquiry on the publication of evidence.
Answered by Ministry of Justice: The Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry is a statutory inquiry under the Inquiries Act 2005 and Sir Wyn Williams and the Inquiry team have the right to receive full access to the information and witnesses they require in order to investigate what went wrong at the Post Office. The Inquiry is entirely independent. Within its published terms of reference, Sir …
Written QuestionHouse of CommonsJohn Milne · Liberal Democrat
Asked: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has assessed the suitability of Fujitsu Ltd to continue holding public sector contracts following its role in the Horizon IT system failures.
Answered by Cabinet Office: The impact that the Horizon scandal has had on postmasters and their families is horrendous. This Government is determined to hold those responsible to account. Fujitsu’s culpability needs to be assessed in light of the final report of Sir Wyn Williams’s Inquiry. Once it is published we will carefully consider whether to launch debarment investigations based on the findings in …
Written QuestionHouse of CommonsJohn Milne · Liberal Democrat
Asked: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how Fujitsu Ltd’s central role in the Horizon IT failures is affecting its eligibility for future government contracts.
Answered by Cabinet Office: The impact that the Horizon scandal has had on postmasters and their families is horrendous. This Government is determined to hold those responsible to account. Fujitsu’s culpability needs to be assessed in light of the final report of Sir Wyn Williams’s Inquiry. Once it is published we will carefully consider whether to launch debarment investigations based on the findings in …
Written QuestionHouse of LordsBaroness Ritchie of Downpatrick · Labour
Asked: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent on 9 July (HL Deb col 1326), what is the timeline for completing assessments under the Procurement Act 2023 of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct.
Answered by Cabinet Office: The timeline for completing assessments of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct is dependent on the circumstances of each individual case. The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation …
Written QuestionHouse of CommonsNavendu Mishra · Labour
Asked: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to review Government contracts with Fujitsu.
Answered by Cabinet Office: The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation and redress. Fujitsu’s role in Horizon is one of the issues currently being reviewed by Sir Wyn Williams’s statutory inquiry. The Government are carefully considering …
Written QuestionHouse of LordsBaroness Ritchie of Downpatrick · Labour
Asked: To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have assessed Fujitsu for exclusion under the Procurement Act 2023.
Answered by Cabinet Office: The timeline for completing assessments of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct is dependent on the circumstances of each individual case. The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation …
Written QuestionHouse of LordsBaroness Ritchie of Downpatrick · Labour
Asked: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total value of the 12 contracts issued to Fujitsu in the last 12 months; and how many of these were new contracts rather than transitional arrangements.
Answered by Cabinet Office: The timeline for completing assessments of suppliers who have engaged in poor performance or professional misconduct is dependent on the circumstances of each individual case. The impact of the Horizon scandal on postmasters and their families has been horrendous. The Government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to seek to make rapid progress on compensation …