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Meeting with Postmasters in the GLO: Alan Bates, Ana Carter, Jenny O’Dell, Kamal
Sandhu, Graham Ward, Ishfuk Chohan
Date: 07/12/2022
Time and venue: House of Commons (tbc), 11-11.30am
Private Secretary: Catherine Angus
Objective/s of the discussion
- Reassure the group that the Government continues to regard compensation for those
in the GLO as a high priority and is working hard to ensure it is delivered quickly.
- [For the department] — seek feedback from the group ahead of the announcement of
further funding by demonstrating sympathy for their suffering.
Point/s for Minister to raise
- I want us to get compensation out to your members as soon as possible. I know you
and other Postmasters want us to get on with this as soon as possible.
- Later today I will be announcing the launch of the scheme. Following our informal
consultation with GLO members in the summer we have incorporated their views in
the design of the scheme. Minister Hollinrake has also consulted with senior
Parliamentarians including Lord Arbuthnot and Kevan Jones MP.
Line/s to take (if required)
- Independent Governance: Later today I will be announcing an independent advisory
board to keep me informed of progress on the scheme and advising me of any
blockages in resolving issues.
- Reasonable legal fees: I know you are keen for reasonable legal fees to be resolved
as quickly as possible; later today I will be announcing next steps on this.
- [If asked] Bankrupt postmasters: Officials are negotiating with Insolvency
Practitioners with the aim of postmasters receiving as much of their interim payment
as possible.
Background
- Bates founded and chairs the JFSA, and led their 555 postmasters (advised by
Freeths LLP) in the Group Litigation Order against the Post Office. The group
received a settlement of £42.75m plus legal costs. However, after paying their
funder’s fees, the postmasters only received c.£10.5m between them.
- Government subsequently announced in March 2022 that it would make further
funding available for such compensation. In June, the Government announced interim
compensation of £19.5m would be paid to the group. To date £16.1m has been paid.
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- Interim payments have been made to 421 of the 484 eligible postmasters. Of the
remaining 63, eight have not yet provided enough information. The remainder relate
to complex cases, notably bankrupt or recently-deceased claimants. Unless we
resolve these before paying, postmasters might not get the maximum benefit of both
the interim payment and the final compensation. Following a previous public
complaint, Alan Bates now seems to accept that we are doing the right thing here.
- Officials have been meeting Bates and Freeths weekly to discuss delivery, including
making interim payments.
- The JFSA has submitted a complaint of maladministration against BEIS & HMG to the
Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman for failing to regulate and oversee
POL during the period in which the Horizon scandal took place. This has not been
progressed recently.
Biographies
Alan Bates, Leader and Founder of the Justice for
Subpostmasters Alliance (JFSA) and lead litigant in the Group
Litigation Order (GLO)
Alan Bates is a former subpostmaster. He subsequently formed
the JFSA campaign group in 2009 with the aim of exposing the
failures of the Post Office and its computer system, Horizon.
In 2018, 555 subpostmasters, led by Bates, took the Post Office to
court in a Group Litigation Action and won, paving the way for
other subpostmasters to claim compensation and have their Horizon-related convictions
quashed.
Jenny O’Dell, Member of the Group Litigation Order (GLO)
Jenny has lived in the village of Great Staughton, Cambridgeshire, for 50 years, where she
operated her Post Office branch.
The branch was forced to close after her account began to show a shortfall of more than
£9,600 in 2009.
Graham Ward, Member of the Group Litigation Order (GLO)
Graham ran the Rivenhall Post Office from 2002-2008 and the Feering Post Office from
2005-2008. He says he was forced to sell his shop, which was also his home, and the false
claims also led to his marriage of 13 years breaking down.
Ana Carter, Member of the Group Litigation Order (GLO)
Ishfuk Chohan, Member of the Group Litigation Order (GLO)
Kamal Sandhu, Member of the Group Litigation Order (GLO)
Briefing coordinator — James Lovesey
Lead SCS - Carl Creswell
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