Ministers line up WH Smith's Staunton to chair embattled Post Office

[TrueBlueTerrier]

https://news.sky.com/story/ministers-li ... e-12679284

Henry Staunton, who will leave the high street stationer in November, is the leading candidate to replace Tim Parker as the Post Office's next chairman, Sky News learns.

Ministers are lining up the outgoing chairman of WH Smith to chair the state-owned Post Office as it navigates the financial fallout of Britain's biggest miscarriage of justice.

Sky News has learnt that Henry Staunton, a former ITV finance chief, has been identified as the leading candidate to succeed Tim Parker later this year.

If it proceeds, Mr Staunton's appointment could be announced within weeks, although it may not take place until after the election of the new Conservative Party leader.

Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary who has responsibility for oversight of the Post Office, is expected to move to the Treasury if Liz Truss becomes prime minister next month.

It was unclear on Monday whether the Post Office chair would be signed off by Mr Kwarteng or a successor, or whether other candidates remained in contention for the role.

Mr Parker has chaired the Post Office since 2015, a period of tumult which has included the launch of the ongoing public inquiry into the IT scandal which resulted in hundreds of sub-postmasters being wrongly prosecuted.

Much of Mr Parker's tenure has been beset by controversy, with the eventual compensation bill for the IT cover-up expected to reach north of £1bn.

The public inquiry has heard harrowing tales of the impact of what has been described as Britain's biggest miscarriage of justice on the victims and their families.