Amend Limitation Act to extend GLO deadline if needed
Post Office Horizon Inquiry · First Interim Report: Compensation · Issued 17 July 2023 · Addressed to: Department for Business and Trade
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
HM Government shall bring forward as soon as possible legislation amending section 11(3)(a) of the Limitation Act 1980 to allow payments of compensation under the GLO scheme to be made to applicants after midnight on 7 August 2024 if that proves to be necessary.
Post Office Horizon Inquiry, First Interim Report: Compensation · 17 Jul 2023 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Post Office (Horizon System) Compensation Act 2024 (c. 1) received Royal Assent on 23 January 2024, establishing a statutory framework for the compensation schemes (Post Office (Horizon System) Compensation Act 2024).
- The Business and Trade Select Committee noted the Limitation Act amendment had not been brought forward as a standalone bill as originally recommended (Business and Trade Select Committee evidence session, January 2026).
- The GLO scheme continued operating beyond August 2024 without the specific Limitation Act amendment recommended.
Response — verbatim from government
●Department for Business and Trade
Department for Business and Trade accepts this recommendation in principle. The Department is determined to deliver the GLO scheme by August 2024 and will consider bringing forward legislation if the deadline appears to be at risk.
Department for Business and Trade · 21 Sep 2023 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 31 Jan 2026 Verification: Interim report recommendations largely implemented through Post Office (Horizon System) Compensation Act 2024 and scheme operational changes. HSS closing date set as 31 January 2026. Sir Gary Hickinbottom appointed to oversee scheme fairness. Source →
- 21 Sep 2023 · Department for Business and Trade Government response: Accepted in principle. Department for Business and Trade accepts this recommendation in principle. The Department is determined to deliver the GLO scheme by August 2024 and will consider bringing forward legislation if the ... Source →
- 6 Jan 2026 · Business and Trade Select Committee Business and Trade Select Committee noted the Limitation Act amendment had not been brought forward as a standalone bill. The government intended to deliver the GLO scheme by August 2024 and was considering longer-term legislative options. View source → Reasonable Progress
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.