Horizon scandal: Post Office scandal victims to be exonerated and compensated as Rishi Sunak proposes new law

Published

2 years ago

January 10, 2024

admin

The prime minister has said a new law will be introduced so people wrongly convicted in the Horizon scandal are “swiftly exonerated and compensated”.

In the first Prime Minister’s Questions of the year, Rishi Sunak said he plans to make sure those convicted as part of the Post Office scandal get exonerated through an act of parliament.

As well as announcing the introduction of new primary legislation – which has yet to be published or given a timetable for voting – Mr Sunak said those who were part of the group litigation order against the Post Office would be eligible for an “upfront payment of £75,000”.

Politics latest: Sunak and Starmer face off in first PMQs of the year

The government has come under increased pressure to take action on the Horizon scandal following the airing of ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office last week.

More than 700 sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses were prosecuted for accounting errors relying on data from the faulty Horizon software.

Once they are exonerated, the government has confirmed sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses will be eligible for at least £600,000 compensation, depending on their circumstances.

The scheme applies to England and Wales.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Sunak said: “Mr Speaker, this is one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in our nation’s history.

“People who worked hard to serve their communities had their lives and their reputations destroyed through absolutely no fault of their own.

“The victims must get justice and compensation. Sir Wyn Williams’ inquiry is undertaking crucial work to undo, to expose what went wrong, and we’ve paid almost £150m in compensation to over to 2,500 victims.

“But today I can announce that we will introduce new primary legislation to make sure that those convicted as a result of the Horizon scandal are swiftly exonerated and compensated.

“We will also introduce a new upfront payment of £75,000 for the vital [Group Litigation Order] group of postmasters.”

The prime minister’s spokesman said the intention was to have the legislation introduced within weeks and compensation paid out by the end of the year.

Kevin Hollinrake, the postal minister, provided an update to the Commons following PMQs on how they plan to deal with people who did commit a crime that get their conviction overturned.

He said that all those claiming compensation will sign a statement of truth to say they did not commit the crimes of which they were accused.

“Anyone subsequently found to have signed such a statement untruthfully will be putting themselves at risk of prosecution or fraud,” Mr Hollinrake said.

The minister admitted this was not “foolproof”, but it was a “proportionate” device “which respects the ordeal with which these people have already suffered”.

He also said the government was considering whether people who had their appeals refused already would have their convictions overturned.

Numerous ways to fast-track the overturning of convictions had been mooted prior to today’s announcement.

Some had called for a mass appeal before the Court of Appeal, while others wanted legislation to overturn the convictions or even a pardon from the King.

It is not clear exactly how the mechanics of the Commons overturning hundreds of prosecutions will work.

Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, indicated earlier this week that his party would support an attempt through law to overturn the convictions.

Responding to Mr Sunak today, Sir Keir said: “Mr Speaker, I heard what the prime minister just said about the Post Office scandal – it is a huge injustice.

“People lost their lives, their liberty and their livelihood, and they’ve been waiting far too long for the truth, for justice, and for compensation.

“So I’m glad the prime minister is putting forward a proposal.

“We will look at the details, and I think it’s the job of all of us to make sure that it delivers the justice that is so needed.”

Click to subscribe to the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts

Last year, the government announced that every wrongly convicted sub-postmaster and sub-postmistress would be offered £600,000 in compensation.

In 2019, the Post Office agreed to pay £58m to 555 sub-postmaster and sub-mistresses.

Politics

Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade, environment secretary says

Published

2 hours ago

July 20, 2025

admin

Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade, environment secretary says

Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in 10 years, the environment secretary has told Sky News.

Steve Reed also pledged to halve sewage pollution from water companies by 2030 as he announced £104 billion of private investment to help the government do that.

But he told Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips this “isn’t the end of our ambition”.

“Over a decade of national renewal, we’ll be able to eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages,” he said.

“But you have to have staging posts along the way, cutting it in half in five years is a dramatic improvement to the problem getting worse and worse and worse every single year.”

He said the water sector is “absolutely broken” and promised to rebuild it and reform it from “top to bottom”.

His earlier pledge to halve sewage pollution from water companies by 2030 is linked to 2024 levels.

The government said it is the first time ministers have set a clear target to reduce sewage pollution and is part of its efforts to respond to record sewage spills and rising water bills.

Ministers are also aiming to cut phosphorus – which causes harmful algae blooms – in half by 2028.

Mr Reed said families had watched rivers, coastlines and lakes “suffer from record levels of pollution”.

“My pledge to you: the government will halve sewage pollution from water companies by the end of the decade,” he added.

Addressing suggestions wealthier families would be charged more for their water, Mr Reed said there are already “social tariffs” and he does not think more needs to be done, as he pointed out there is help for those struggling to pay water bills.

The announcement comes ahead of the publication of the Independent Water Commission’s landmark review into the sector on Monday morning.

The commission was established by the UK and Welsh governments as part of their joint response to failures in the industry, but ministers have already said they’ll stop short of nationalising water companies.

Mr Reed said he is eagerly awaiting the report’s publication and said he would wait to see what author Sir John Cunliffe says about Ofwat, the water regulator, following suggestions the government is considering scrapping it.

On Friday, the Environment Agency published data which showed serious pollution incidents caused by water firms increased by 60% in England last year, compared with 2023.

Meanwhile, the watchdog has received a record £189m to support hundreds of enforcement officers for inspections and prosecutions.

“One of the largest infrastructure projects in England’s history will clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good,” Mr Reed said.

But the Conservatives have accused the Labour government of having so far “simply copied previous Conservative government policy”.

“Labour’s water plans must also include credible proposals to improve the water system’s resilience to droughts, without placing an additional burden on bill payers and taxpayers,” shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins added.

The Rivers Trust says sewage and wastewater discharges have taken place over the weekend, amid thunderstorms in parts of the UK.

Discharges take place to prevent the system from becoming overwhelmed, with storm overflows used to release extra wastewater and rainwater into rivers and seas.

Water company Southern Water said storm releases are part of the way sewage and drainage systems across the world protect homes, schools and hospitals from flooding.

Politics

GENIUS Act blocks Big Tech, banks from dominating stablecoins: Circle exec

Published

3 hours ago

July 20, 2025

admin

GENIUS Act blocks Big Tech, banks from dominating stablecoins: Circle exec

Circle’s Dante Disparte says the GENIUS Act ensures tech giants and banks can’t dominate the stablecoin market without facing strict structural and regulatory hurdles.