Post Office lobbied for law change to make it easier to hound staff in IT scandal, letter reveals 

The Post Office lobbied for a crucial law change which made it easier to pursue postmasters wrongly accused in the firm’s IT scandal.

The head of the company’s criminal law division wrote to Britain’s legal watchdog in 1995 and said existing rules on the use of computer evidence in trials were ‘somewhat onerous’.

This letter was sent by the Law Commission to solicit feedback on the proposed changes to court rules regarding computer evidence.

Any firm or person relying upon such evidence at the time had to show that the computer system worked properly.

The head of the company’s criminal law division wrote to Britain’s legal watchdog in 1995 and said existing rules on the use of computer evidence in trials were ‘somewhat onerous’ [File photo]

But the Post Office said this was ‘far too strict and can hamper prosecutions’. It asked the Law Commission for a relaxation of the rules to make it more easy to prosecute people on the basis computer evidence. 

The Post Office’s calls, which were echoed at BT and Inland Revenue were also heard.

In 1999 – the year the company introduced its Horizon IT system – the law was changed to introduce a presumption that computer systems were working correctly.

Horizon turned out to be not operating as it should, years after it was discovered. More than 700 postmasters were wrongly prosecuted in what has been dubbed one of the UK’s biggest miscarriages of justice. Some of them were sent to prison after being accused of false accounting and theft.

Jo Hamilton, a grandmother who was forced to re-mortgage her home after being accused of theft by the Post Office, said: ‘The law change covered their backsides and made life a hell of a lot easier for them when they came after us’

These victims had to prove for nearly 20 years that the IT systems were responsible for the disappearance of their money.

Though the Post Office’s letter to the Law Commission was written before Horizon was introduced, it has rankled postmasters who feel that the firm was preparing to bring in an IT system and wanted to cover its back should any problems appear.

Jo Hamilton, a grandmother who was forced to re-mortgage her home after being accused of theft by the Post Office, said: ‘The law change covered their backsides and made life a hell of a lot easier for them when they came after us. I’m not surprised by this – I’m just so furious with them.’

Andy Furey, the national officer for postmasters at the Communication Workers Union, said prior to Horizon, the Post Office did not have any automation so the timing of the letter ‘feels very premeditated and calculated’.

According to the Post Office, the submissions were made during a period when Royal Mail owned the company. The Post Office stated that the Horizon system wasn’t introduced until 1999 four years after it was first reported to the watchdog.

Sir Wyn William, an ex-High Court Judge is currently leading an independent investigation into scandals at the Post Office.