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From: Secretary of State DBT (DBT)[/O=EXCHANGELABS/OU=EXCHANGE
ADMINISTRATIVE GROUP
(FYDIBOHF23SPDLT)/CN=RECIPIENTS/CN=73D1B78651B9426CB175E1B86
FB7588D-1724E4D2-17]
Sent:
To: Spad SOS
§ Minister MADDERS
Ce: Carl CRESWELL (DBT. David
BICKERTON Charlotte
Rob BRIGHTWELL
EYiss
Subject: [Readout] RE: Briefing for SoS discussion with POL Chair
OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE
Hi all,
Please see below my e-sig for the readout of the meeting between SoS and NR early
today.
Warmest,
Jason
Jason Cheung I Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Business and Trade
Department for Business and Trade I Old Admiralty Building I London SW1A 2DY
Attendees
+ Secretary of State (SoS)
+ Nigel Railton (NR), Chair of Post Office Limited
+ David Bickerton, Director General for Business Group
+ Carl Creswell, Director for Post Office and Business Resilience
+ Eleanor Brooks, Deputy Director in Post Office Policy
+ Annie Leigh, Principal Private Secretary to SoS
+ Private Office to SoS
Readout
+ During introductions, NR mentioned that the previous government brought him
in as “an agent of change”, to bring forth change to the Post Office Limited (POL)
and make sure it is fit for purpose. NR mentioned that there are 3 main areas of
focus:
+ Remediation:
+ NR’s views is that DBT should take over on this process as (1) it
needs to be sped up, and (2) POL is not trusted to handle the process
by the public/affected subpostmasters.
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+ Get a new deal for subpostmasters:
+ NR’s objectives is to put subpostmasters at the heart of Post Office
and reduce the centre.
+ NR has started a strategic review which, in his view, is making good
progress, and is crucial to informing POL on how to achieve “getting a
new deal for subpostmasters”.
+ NR mentioned how important banking hubs are, but suggested that it
should be demand led: He wants to work out where the demand is, but
is unsure whether banks would be supportive/provide the data for
doing so. He asked for SoS/HMG supportive on this.
+ NR also suggested to review the requirement for 11,000 Post
Offices. He suggested that the strategic review will be able to inform
this decision.
- NR stated that his objective is to move Post Office away from HMG
funding and to find a way for it to be self-sufficient.
+ Horizon Replacement System:
+ NR provided some historical background, mentioning to SoS that the
NBIT project started 3 years ago with a budget of 180m, and is now
looking at 1.2b instead.
+ NR wants to pivot, and will rely on the strategic review to inform POL
how to do so.
+ NR also wants to bring in some experts in to provide advise to him.
+ SoS asked for advice on ensuring confidence on POL and POL governance in
the future. NR suggested that this can be tackled in 2 ways: 1) work can be done
at a corporate level, to restructure POL and slim down POL, and 2) to rebuild the
relationship between postmasters and ensure standards in both franchises and
in the services provided by the centre.
+ In relation to next steps, NR suggested for another meeting towards the end of
August, where they can talk through the strategic review and devise a plan. SoS
agreed.
OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE
From: Brooks-White Jobshare {~
Sent: Tuesday, July 9, 2024 11:37
To: Secretary of State DBT (DBT) ¢
Security) ¢
SpAds Office (Energy
- ; David BICKERTON (DBT)
Charlotte HEYES (DBT)
Rob BRIGHTWELL (DBT)
my LILLEYE!(DBT)
ase POULDEN- (DBT)
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Subject: Briefing for SoS discussion with POL Chair
OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE
Jason
Please find attached an updated brief for SoS’s intro chat with Nigel Railton as
requested. (NB this is now just a brief for discussion with Nigel despite the doc title).
Eleanor
OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE