POL00006797
POL00006797
Private and Confidential
Mr A Cash
Cartwright King Solicitors
Norwich Union House, South Parade
Old Market Square
Nottingham
NG12LH
16 August 2013
Your Ref: AC2/37142
Dear Andy
Thank you for your letter of 2 August 2013 enclosing Simon Clarke's advice on “Disclosure — the Duty to Record
and Retain Material”; unfortunately I had not seen your letter and was not aware of it until Martin’s email on
14 August. That advice was prepared as a consequence of statements purportedly made in connection with
the weekly conference calls we established to share across Post Office Limited issues identified with the
Horizon system (the “Horizon Calls”).
A key purpose of the Horizon Calls is to ensure Horizon users are promptly made aware of any issues with it, so
that those issues can be effectively managed. Post Office Limited’s external law firms are asked to attend the
Horizon Calls so that they are made aware of any issues at the same time, and can therefore apply that
knowledge when acting for Post Office Limited. This is especially important for the work your firm does where
Horizon-based evidence is often central to the criminal prosecutions you conduct for Post Office Limited,
which prosecutions must of course be conducted in accordance with strict regulatory and ethical guidelines.
lam therefore deeply concerned at the suggestion in Simon’s note that there may have been an attempt to
destroy documentary material generated in connection with the Horizon Calls, specifically any minutes of the
calls. I note that Simon’s advice does not suggest that material connected to the operation of Horizon itself
may have been compromised.
Post Office Limited is committed to conducting its business in an open, transparent and lawful manner. Any
suggestion to the contrary would not reflect Post Office Limited policy, and would not be authorised or
endorsed by Post Office Limited. Accordingly, the purported statements referred to in Simon’s note do not
reflect or represent Post Office Limited’s position.
I can confirm that we will continue to hold the Horizon Calls for the foreseeable future, and that minutes of
those calls are and will continue to be taken. For administrative reasons, these minutes will be centrally stored
with our solicitors Bond Dickinson LLP, with access to those minutes being available to your firm and those you
engage such as expert witnesses.
I trust this clarifies Post Office Limited’s position on this matter. Please let me know if we need to discuss this
further.
Susart Crichton
www.postoffice.co.uk