Parliament has passed legislation to overturn the convictions of wrongly prosecuted subpostmasters, a result of the “wash up” of pending laws following the UK general election announcement on 4 July. The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill, once receiving Royal Assent, will allow branch managers to have their theft and false accounting convictions overturned en masse due to issues with the Post Office’s Horizon IT system.
Over 900 people were convicted based on discrepancies shown by the Horizon system, despite no evidence being found to support the claims. Many subpostmasters were pressured into accepting plea deals for false accounting and still faced jail time. Since a 2019 High Court ruling blamed Horizon for the losses, about a hundred convictions have been overturned, with the new legislation aiming to expedite the process for the rest and provide compensation.
Despite concerns of the legislation getting lost during Parliament dissolution for the election, it was fast-tracked through the “wash up” process. Minister Kevin Hollinrake celebrated the legislation passing and acknowledged the support received. The public outcry from the ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Post Office also influenced the introduction of the legislation, which comes 25 years after Horizon’s implementation and 15 years after the scandal was first exposed.
However, the legislation does not cover all affected by the scandal, with the Scottish government introducing its own legislation for those convicted under Scottish law. Some victims have been excluded as their convictions were not based on Horizon evidence. Between 2000 and 2015, 736 subpostmasters were convicted using Horizon evidence, leading to the largest miscarriage of justice in UK history.