That this House congratulates Jarrow and Gateshead East constituent Christopher Head for being honoured with an OBE for services to justice in the New Years Honours List; notes that he was the youngest subpostmaster at just eighteen when taking over the West Boldon Post Office Branch; further notes that this commendation is wholly deserved after his years of tireless campaigning for justice for his fellow subpostmasters affected by the Post Office Horizon Scandal; recognises his enormous cont...
That this House regrets that Post Office Limited is considering closing Wester Hailes Post Office; further regrets the potential loss of jobs and service provision in the heart of one of Scotland's most deprived communities; notes that Post Office Limited has not yet contacted the local Member of Parliament to discuss their proposals for their vital community hub in one of Scotland's most deprived communities; agrees that the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry uncovered significant problems in th...
That this House is deeply alarmed by new powers contained within the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill that would allow the Government to engage in the mass surveillance of tens of millions of people's bank accounts; notes that these new powers would force banks to spy on the 23 million individuals in the welfare system, including those who are disabled, sick, caregivers, jobseekers and pensioners, as well as on the private banking data of people related to them including partners,...
That this House supports the call for the Freedom of the City of Liverpool to be bestowed upon Liverpool-born Post Office Horizon campaigner Alan Bates; notes this is the highest civil award in the city and has previously been awarded to those who have left an indelible mark on the people of Liverpool, including the 97 Hillsborough victims; recognises that resilient and determined campaigning against injustice lies in the heart and DNA of this city’s daughters and sons; further recognises the...
That this House notes that the Post Office Horizon scandal has reemphasised the need for a Hillsborough Law; acknowledges that more tragedies would benefit from a duty of candour on public servants and a parity of arms; supports the call for an independent panel inquiry with full powers to compel disclosure into the death of seven-year-old Zane Gbangbola, who died during floods in 2014 from poisoning by hydrogen cyanide detected by Fire Services HAZMAT; further notes that Zane’s family home w...
That this House believes that the 555 litigants, who won civil proceedings against Post Office Ltd in 2018-19, should not be excluded from the Post Office Horizon compensation scheme; that the exclusion of these litigants from the compensation scheme is having and will continue to have a direct and devastating impact on these individuals and their families, especially as they exposed the scandal against all odds and have been left with the legal bill for doing so; resolves that all those affe...
That this House notes with concern that a number of postmasters have been forced to pay back thousands of pounds, or have been prosecuted or imprisoned, solely on the basis of questionable data indicating cash shortfalls from the Post Office Horizon computer system introduced in 2000; further notes that the BBC Panorama investigation on 17 August 2015, entitled Trouble at the Post Office, demonstrated the damaging effect this has had on the lives of the postmasters involved; acknowledges that...