During the public inquiry into the Post Office Horizon scandal, it was revealed that the government trusted the Post Office’s views over allegations made by subpostmasters claiming mistreatment over unexplained branch losses. The government ignored the concerns raised by subpostmasters and their supporters, and instead sent questions regarding the allegations to the Post Office for response.
Former Computer Weekly reporter Rebecca Thomson raised concerns about the reliability of the Horizon computer system in 2009, as well as the mistreatment of subpostmasters by the Post Office. However, when these concerns were brought to the government’s attention, they simply forwarded them to the Post Office for reassurance.
During the inquiry, it was noted that the Post Office CEO at the time believed subpostmasters were to blame for account shortfalls, rather than acknowledging flaws in the Horizon system. Despite successful prosecutions of subpostmasters based on IT evidence from Horizon, it was later proven in the High Court that the system was indeed flawed.
The public inquiry also highlighted the government’s reliance on the Post Office’s reassurances regarding the Horizon system’s reliability, despite strong allegations of mistreatment and unfair treatment of subpostmasters. The inquiry revealed that the Post Office had been dismissive of claims made by subpostmasters, leading to a significant miscarriage of justice.