Post Office scandal: Ministers meeting to discuss Horizon scandal as one million sign petition to remove ex-boss’s CBE
Ministers are meeting today to discuss the Horizon scandal, as the petition to remove the CBE from ex-Post Office boss Paula Vennells reached one million signatures.
Justice Secretary Alex Chalk and postal minister Kevin Hollinrake will discuss the scandal in the wake of renewed scrutiny following the ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, which tells how former sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses were held liable by the Post Office for financial discrepancies thrown up by its computerised accounting system.
Meanwhile, the demands to remove Ms Vennells’ CBE reached a new milestone overnight just four days after the final episode of the drama. At the time, Ms Vennells oversaw the organisation and routinely denied problems with the system.
The true story behind drama on Horizon IT scandal
There are growing calls for the government to quash all the prosecutions of sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses, with some even demanding the Post Office be suspended from bringing its own prosecutions.
Lord James Arbuthnot, a former Tory MP who campaigned on the scandal, told Sky News that “the idea that a corporation which itself is being investigated by the police should start prosecuting people is absurd”.
The last episode of Mr Bates Vs The Post Office aired on Thursday. Pic: ITV/Shutterstock
The petition to remove Ms Vennells’ honour is addressed to Sir Chris Wormald, the chair of the Cabinet Office’s Forfeiture Committee.
It says: “Evidence has been produced that the Post Office engaged in a mass cover-up which led to the wrongful prosecution of 550 Post Office Staff many of whom were subsequently jailed, bankrupted and in some cases, sadly took their own lives.
“Having been handed a CBE for services to the Post Office, and moved out into other senior positions in government and healthcare, it is only right that this award is now withdrawn through the process of forfeiture.”
Rishi Sunak has said the government is “looking at” the option of exonerating the Post Office branch managers involved in the scandal.
The prime minister confirmed that Mr Chalk is considering ways of helping to clear the names of those convicted in what has been called the most widespread miscarriage of justice in UK history.
Lord Arbuthnot added that he wrote to David Cameron when he was prime minister about Horizon, but was not aware if he actually saw the communications.
He added that “no party” and “none of us politicians” come out well from the scandal – saying calls on former postal minister Sir Ed Davey to answer questions are a “red herring”.
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‘Net may be closing’ on those responsible for Horizon IT scandal
The Metropolitan Police also confirmed that it is investigating the Post Office over potential fraud offences after the handling of the Horizon IT scandal.
The organisation’s pursuit of branch managers led to more than 700 prosecutions, criminal convictions and, in some cases, prison sentences.
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A summary of the Post Office scandal making the headlines
Reports suggest that since Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, 50 new potential victims have approached lawyers.
A public inquiry into the scandal is also ongoing.
Ms Vennells has previously said she is “truly sorry” for the “suffering” caused to sub-postmasters who were wrongly convicted of offences.
The co-founders of the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream brand are demanding the brand be given its independence back amid a long-running row with its current UK owner.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield have written an open letter demanding that it be “released” from its parent firm.
Mr Cohen told Sky News he would give back the money he received in the sale of the business to Unilever in 2000 if it meant the brand could be independent.
Ben & Jerry’s is set to spin off all its ice cream brands under The Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) name in a deal set to be fully completed before the end of the year.
“You’re saying, would I give it back? Absolutely. If we could still have Ben and Jerry’s independent, any day”, he said.
“It seems like the board of Magnum has been Trumpified”, Mr Cohen told Sky News as he protested the “silencing” of Ben & Jerry’s social mission.
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The consumer goods firm Unilever has never enjoyed an easy relationship with Ben & Jerry’s – a brand known for its activism on many political and social issues.
As part of the original merger deal, an independent board was set up to protect the ice cream brand’s mission.
But a series of disputes have followed.
The most high-profile spat came in 2021 when the US brand took the decision not to sell ice cream in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories on the grounds that sales would be “inconsistent” with its values.
Ben Cohen in London
Unilever responded by selling the business to its licensee in Israel.
The independent board is currently locked in a legal dispute with Unilever, claiming in March that its then-chief executive David Stever was improperly sacked.
Ben Cohen. File pic: AP
For its part, Unilever has always argued that it “reserved primary responsibility for financial and operational decisions” as owners of Ben & Jerry’s.
In another example of the frostiness between them, an ice cream flavour launched in support of Democrat presidential candidate Kamala Harris went down badly in London.
Ben & Jerry’s claimed Unilever had demanded it stop public criticism of Donald Trump.
Mr Cohen was one of seven people arrested during the Senate protest in May
Ben Cohen himself was arrested earlier this year over a protest in support of Gaza during a US Senate hearing.
He and Mr Greenfield intervened in the ownership row as TMICC briefed investors on their plans at a so-called capital markets day. They say the independent board and many consumers and employees “no longer support the trajectory on which it is set”.
Mr Cohen, who is attending the event to protest, said: “Ben & Jerry’s was founded on a simple but radical premise: that our business could thrive and make outstanding products whilst standing up for progressive values.
“We fought to ensure our social justice mission was protected by Unilever when the company was acquired, but over the past several years, this has been eroded, and the company’s voice has been muted.
“We won’t be silent anymore. Authenticity has always been at the very heart of what we do, and stripping this away risks destroying the very value of Ben & Jerry’s. We urge the board and potential investors to rethink the inclusion of Ben & Jerry’s in Magnum’s future makeup and establish a Free Ben & Jerry’s.”
The new ice cream division, which will also comprise other brands such as Wall’s, is based in the Netherlands and will have a primary stock market listing in Amsterdam.
A spokesperson for The Magnum Ice Cream Company told Sky News: “Ben & Jerry’s is a proud part of The Magnum Ice Cream Company and is not for sale.
“We remain committed to Ben & Jerry’s unique three-part mission – product, economic and social – and look forward to building on its success as an iconic, much-loved business.”
Unilever has also been contacted for comment.
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