Investigators to check Post Office computers

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18535354" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The Post Office has appointed external investigators to examine allegations of deficiencies in the computer system used in all its outlets.

It comes after many sub-postmasters said they had been wrongly accused of theft, fraud and false accounting.

Around 100 sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses have registered an interest in suing Post Office Ltd over its Horizon computer system.

Horizon records financial transactions in branches across the UK.

Sub-postmasters say they have been forced to pay back many thousands of pounds' worth of money which they did not take.

Many of them them were stripped of their post office contracts and bankrupted, and a handful have served prison sentences.

Forensic accountants

The Post Office has instructed a firm of forensic accountants, 2nd Sight Limited, to conduct an independent review of 10 existing cases raised by a number of MPs and the law firm Shoosmiths.

A confidential Post Office internal memo in September 2008 said that in its crown offices alone - those operated by the Post Office itself rather than by sub-postmasters - there had been £2.2m of losses in one year, which was having a serious effect on its ability to achieve profitability.

It has refused to publish figures on apparent losses at sub-post offices.

The Post Office has repeatedly denied there is a problem with the system, saying the claims have been made by a very small number of people who had contracts with it.

A spokesman said: "The Post Office continues to have absolute confidence in the robustness and integrity of its branch accounting processes.

"Over the past 10 years, many millions of branch reconciliations have been carried out with transactions and balances accurately recorded by more than 25,000 different sub-postmasters.

"The Post Office has no hesitation in agreeing to an external review of these few individual cases that have been raised with us by a number of MPs."

But Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen said the external investigators should have been appointed independently.

Mr Bridgen, who has such a case in his own North West Leicestershire constituency, said: "I would far rather they be appointed by another body. I would prefer it if they were paid by the Cabinet Office.

"It is important that this whole review should be beyond reproach and conducted at arm's length from the Post Office."

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.channel4.com/news/mps-raise- ... ent-system" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


MPs meet with Post Office officials to raise subpostmasters' concerns over a payment system that they say has caused inaccuracies for which staff are charged and held legally accountable.

A group of MPs led by the Conservative James Arbuthnot presented a number of cases where subpostmasters have been charged with theft and held responsible for false accounting that they say are the fault of the system they use.

The Horizon system was introduced in 2000 and is used to process Royal Mail services by those running a post-office within a shop. But since its introduction, subpostmasters have complained that the system consistently records errors in accounting which they are unable to correct, and that they are held liable for the subsequent recorded losses.

One subpostmaster was charged with theft and told to pay back £36,000, despite calling the system's support services when she realised that errors were being processed.

At first they took money out of her wages to make up the difference in the accounting errors, and then took her to court after an auditing visit.

"I remortgaged my house, borrowed and was generously given enough money to repay the post office in full in order to get them to drop the theft charge," she said. "I had to plead guilty to 14 counts of false accounting in (the) Crown Court and only escaped prison because over 70 people turned up to support me."

MPs are calling for disputed cases to be examined individually through a robust, transparent process. One of the problems raised by the campaign group, Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance, is that subpostmasters’ appeals against theft are dealt with solely by the Post Office, with no independent arbitrator.

"It is in the interests of everyone involved – constituents, their MPs, and Post Office Ltd – to get this matter resolved," said James Arbuthnot MP, who said he was positive about the meeting's outcome.

Paula Vennells, Post Office Limited's chief executive said: "The Post Office continues to have absolute confidence in the robustness and integrity of its branch accounting processes. We have no hesitation in agreeing to an external review of these few individual cases that have been raised with us by Mr Arbuthnot and some of his fellow MPs."

Alan Bates from the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance welcomed that the issue was being raised, "but unfortunately it only seems to be concentrating on one particular area," he told Channel 4 News. "They're purely looking at false accounting – it is only one part of what's wrong with Horizon."

He lists issues to do with a lack of training, lack of access to the system, subpostmasters' liability for losses and the failure of the system to produce an audit trail.

[fishtank]

We've talked about this on here for years...the money goes "missing" but nobody ever finds any trace of it.
If they find something wrong with Horizon heads will roll and the compensation could be massive.
I would expect the pressure to be on not to find any issues.

[Straight4ward]

It's interesting that this "story" refuses to go away despite all the previous denials that there could be any fault with the system.

Unfortunately, a number of subbie's have had their lives ruined in the meantime.

[hantsman]

There is somebody making FOI requests to RM on the whatdothey know site, im guessing they are ex PO

[chelseachris]

The Postmaster at our office has been suspended and has since taken a nervous breakdown since the vultures i mean auditors came to town to check things over.

[donnac]

If a problem is found then would that also help POL staff in crown offices that have been dismissed for theft then found not guilty in court after being prosecuted by POL?

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9347634 ... laims.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Post Office hires accountants to review sub-postmasters' computer claims

The 10 sub-postmasters were accused of false accounting by the postal service after money went missing. They were stripped of their contracts and some went to prison, in cases dating back up to five years.

However the sub-postmasters always claimed that severe deficiencies in the computer system used in Post Office branches were to blame for money going missing.

The former Post Office workers are part of a wider group of around 100 sub-postmasters who are considering suing Post Office Ltd over alleged problems with its computer system, which is called Horizon.

Following a meeting between the Post Office’s management and MPs on Monday, the Post Office has appointed external investigators to examine allegations of deficiencies in the computer system relating to the 10 cases.

The firm of forensic accountants, called 2nd Sight Limited, will re-examine the 10 cases to see whether the Horizon system could be to blame for the accounting irregularities.

A Post Office spokesman said that it “continues to have absolute confidence in the robustness and integrity” of its branch accounting processes.

“Over the past 10 years, many millions of branch reconciliations have been carried out with transactions and balances accurately recorded by 25,000 different sub-postmasters.

“The Post Office had no hesitation in agreeing to an external review of these few individual cases that have been raised with us by a number of MPs,” the spokesman said.

Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen, who has an accused sub-postmaster in his North West Leicestershire constituency, said the external investigators should have been appointed independently.

Mr Bridgen said: "I would far rather they be appointed by another body. I would prefer it if they were paid by the Cabinet Office.

"It is important that this whole review should be beyond reproach and conducted at arm's length from the Post Office."

[Woody Guthrie]

Can't believe this was 9 years ago and they've just been cleared.

What a s**t show.
Paula, pack a toothbrush and maybe find somewhere to hide a mobile phone.