Post Office described IT bugs as ‘exceptions’ to make them sound ‘non-emotive’, inquiry told
Senior figures at the Post Office began describing computer bugs as “exceptions” as they grappled with mounting complaints from sub-postmasters about its faulty Horizon IT system, it has emerged.
The then Post Office chief executive Paula Vennells made the suggestion to colleagues after she asked her husband for advice on a “non-emotive” way of referring to computer problems, the inquiry into the Post Office scandal heard.
It came amid concern within the company about bad publicity over the prosecution of sub-postmasters accused of stealing from branches.
Between 1999 and 2015, more than 700 Post Office managers were prosecuted after the faulty accounting software, provided by Fujitsu, made it seem like money was missing. At the time, the company insisted its systems were robust.
On Tuesday the inquiry heard evidence from the Post Office’s former lead in-house lawyer Susan Crichton, who was quizzed about a series of emails sent between senior figures.
This included a message from Ms Vennells, written in July 2013, which said: “My engineer/computer literate husband sent the following reply to the question: ‘What is a non-emotive word for computer bugs, glitches, defects that happen as a matter of course?’
“Answer: ‘Exception or anomaly. You can also say conditional exception/anomaly which only manifests itself under unforeseen circumstances xx'”
The Post Office’s director of communications at the time, Mark Davies, replied: “I like exception v much. Very helpful”.
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Post Office: New evidence revealed
Following the exchange, Post Office emails and documents began referring to computer problems as “exceptions” and “anomalies”, including in a briefing document written by Ms Crichton. The wording was also then used in a briefing note to MPs.
Julian Blake, counsel to the inquiry, asked the retired lawyer: “The wording here that’s being used, is there an element of smoke and mirrors about the whole thing now?”
She replied: “It certainly reads that way”.
Mr Blake said the use of “exception” instead of “bug” was “absolutely Orwellian”.
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The inquiry was also shown correspondence between senior figures about whether to launch a review into alleged cases of theft. An email from Ms Crichton showed she was against a full independent investigation into sub-postmasters who had already been convicted.
She wrote in June 2012: “I do not think that we want to be seen as re-opening cases but rather position this as a review of the existing evidence to enable an understanding of the outstanding concerns and the facts… For those who have not been prosecuted we can offer a full independent investigation”.
Ms Crichton agreed with Mr Blake that her stance had been a “mistake on her part”, and added: “I was too short-sighted maybe”.
She told the inquiry that she “tried to stop prosecutions reliant on Horizon evidence” but left her role as the company’s general counsel in late 2013 as former Post Office chair Alice Perkins had lost confidence in her.
Earlier, Ms Crichton began her evidence with an apology to those affected by the scandal.
“l am truly sorry for the suffering caused to you and your families. I wish that things had been resolved more quickly and again, I’m very sorry that they haven’t been,” she said.
The inquiry continues.
Business
Vivergo: How US-UK trade deal could bring about collapse of huge renewable energy plant in Hull
The smell of yeast still hangs in the air at the Vivergo plant in Hull but the machines have fallen quiet.
More than 100 lorries usually pass through here each day, carrying 3,000 tonnes of wheat. It is milled, fermented and distilled. The final product is bioethanol, a renewable fuel that is then blended into E10 petrol.
This is a vast operation. It took several years to build, with considerable investment, but it is on the verge of closing down. Management and staff are holding out for a last-minute reprieve from the government but time is running out.
It’s been a turbulent journey. The plant was already being annihilated by US rivals, losing about £3m a month. Vivergo and Ensus, based in Teesside, blamed regulations that enable US companies to earn double subsidies.
They were pushing for regulatory change but then a killer blow: The US-UK trade deal, which allows 1.4 billion litres of American ethanol into the UK tariff-free (down from 19%).
“We’ve effectively given the whole of the UK market to the US producers,” said Ben Hackett, managing director at Vivergo.
“If we were to have the same support that the US industry has, if we could use genetically modified crops, we wouldn’t need that tariff. We would be able to compete. If we had the same energy costs. We wouldn’t need those tariffs.”
The government has the weekend to come up with a plan that could keep the business running. If it fails, Vivergo will begin issuing redundancy notices to its 160 staff.
Ben Hackett
It’s a devastating prospect for workers, many of them live in Hull and are nervous about alternative opportunities in the area.
Mike Walsh, a logistics manager who has been working at the plant for 14 years, said: “It’s not a great place to be at the moment. It’s a very well paid, very high-skilled role and they’ve (Vivergo) given everybody an opportunity in an area that doesn’t pay that well…. The jobs market isn’t as good as what people would like. So it does impact the local economy.”
He called on the government to “help us, save us, give this industry a future”.
His colleague Claire Wood, lead productions engineer, said: “I moved here after a career in oil and gas for 10 years, partly because I want to be part of the transition to renewable fuels. I can see so much potential here and it’s absolutely devastating to know that this place might be closed very, very shortly and that all that potential just goes away.”
Thousands more could be affected. Haulage companies may have to lay off truck drivers and farmers could also suffer a blow.
Vivergo makes bioethanol using wheat. That wheat is bought from farms from Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
Claire Wood
The National Farmers Union has sounded the alarm, saying: “Biofuels are extremely important for the crops sector, and their domestic demand of up to two million tonnes can be very important to balance supply and demand and to produce up to one million tonnes of animal feed as a by-product.”
Another bioproduct is carbon dioxide. The gas can be captured and used to put the fizz in drinks or injected into packaging to preserve food.
If Vivergo and Ensus were to go, Britain would lose as much as 80% of its output of carbon dioxide. Supplies are already tight across Europe, meaning this decision could compound shortages across a range of sectors, from meat-packing to healthcare.
The industry is calling on the government to help. Vivergo says it needs temporary financial support but that the government must create a regulatory and commercial environment in which it can thrive.
It says rules that award double subsidies to companies that use waste product in their bioethanol must be changed. At present, these rules are being used by US companies that make ethanol from Uldr – a by-product of processing corn. They argue this is not a genuine waste product.
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Another option is to grow the market. Industry leaders are calling on ministers to increase the mandated renewable fuel content in petrol from 10% to 15% and for an expansion into aviation fuels. That would allow British companies to carve out a space.
The government has been locked in talks with the company since June.
It said: “We will continue to take proactive steps to address the long-standing challenges it faces and remain committed to a way forward that protects supply chains, jobs and livelihoods.”
However, the time for talking is almost over.
Mr Hackett said he had no idea how the government would respond but he was firm with his stance, saying: “In times of global uncertainty, losing that energy certainty and supply from the UK is a problem.
“I think what they’re missing out on is the future growth agenda. We’re the foundation on which the green industrial strategy can be built. We make bioethanol that today decarbonises transport. Tomorrow it will decarbonise marine. It will decarbonise aviation.”
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