POL00131715
POL00131715
DRAFT LETTER TO BNR ~ PROJECT SPARROW
1,2,3 I AtFurtherte our meeting on 26 January 2016, i#-which- provided you with an update on the work I
4,5 I have undertakenam—undertaking with the assistance of Jonathan Swift QC and Christopher Knight,
6,7 I bothethers ofat 11 Kings Bench Walk_Chambers to review of the Post Office’s handling of complaints
7 I made by Sub-Postmasters about the operation of the Horizon software system. , I now write to set out
8 I further information about Sel eeniiaun Wem nccaeendaten ay-review-of the Past Office's
handling of the Hori ted ints_tn_particular_ 1 thought it Id-be -helpfulte-sh ith
9 I yournyapproach to the review, the scope of work undertaken so far, and my initial findings. also wish
10 I -as-wellaste-outline my plans to bring the workferbringingit to a conclusion.
Scope of the Review
ll I My objectives were as follows. Heek,as-my-starting point, the following scope:
“To review the Post Office’s handling of the complaints made by sub-postmasters regarding the alleged
flaws in its Horizon electronic point of sale and branch accounting system, and determine whether the
processes designed and implemented by Post Office Limited to understand, investigate and resolve
those complaints were reasonable and appropriate”.
12, 13 I Lconsidered that the Hmyjudgmentmyreview should address both what had happened to date (in
14,15 I the period 2010 — 2015), the -histerical_pesitier_and also the important question as to whether there
16, 17 I were any gaps in the work done and whatat more, if anything, could now reasonably er should now be
18, 19 I done to address the complaints that had been raised.; t bleall Lt. f a
ith. fid, A 4, +h. 274 dertak tht a ti ij Hy i ind-Whath.
iF yb ve! jnthe2010-2015 jed2hf th. inh kd isth furths
¥ ia ? ¥ Bap) 7 ¥
rat hich bly betaken2
20, 21 I I then-decidedtermined that the particular focus should be on those matters at the heart of the
complaints raised against the Post Office, namely:
i) criminal prosecutions;
ii) the Horizon system (i.e. the software);
iii) the support provided to sub-postmasters through training and helplines; and
iv) the investigations in the circumstances of specific cases where a complaint had been raised.
22), 23 I The remainder of this letter summarises the headline findings of the frers+myreview in these areas,
and the recommendations made against each.
24, 25 I dataking thisworkforward-I can confirm that mmy advisors requested and were given unrestricted
access to documentation. Numerous meetings were held between them and a range of Post Office
26, 27 I staff, employees of Fujitsu (who provide the system), and Deloitte. I met; as—well-as—with Lord
28 I Arbuthnot, and with and with representatives of Second Sight (the forensic accountants who have worked on
29, 30, 31, ... I this issue) and-Fujitsutwhe-p: the system}. forth: id i¥doubt-I did-asked Alan Bates,
33, 34 I the Chairman of the Justice for Sub-postmasters’ Alliance, to_meet me, ake eerebut regrettably he
declined.
POL00131715
POL00131715
Principal Findings and Recommendations
i) Criminal Prosecutions
35, 36, 37, ... I Jn-termas-efTthe safety or otherwise of any specific conviction, this-is a matter for propery reservedte-
40,41 I the Criminal Cases Review Commission, whichis—the independent body established to consider
42, 43 I complaints of miscarriages of justice, and which is currently considering some 23 applications from
44 I former sub-postmasters. The Post Office is co-operating fully with the CCRC’s work and I have, of
course, directed that it should continue to do so.
45 I The Post Office has previously taken advice from solicitors and Leading Counsel expert in criminal law
on the adequacy of the Post Office’s policy and practice on disclosure where it acts as prosecutor.
Based on that I am satisfied that proper disclosure was made.H4 thing inthe terial:
ted that th: is id thatthe Hori: +4 ible-forth: 4
SE ¥ ¥ Pe
hich Ited i. ieti 4 diti. fh. id. thatPest Office’: Hi rN tii
7 7 Perey ii
+ of disch finf tis ffect): i rf +hatth. faci ta
P S- oP
td, ived- of inf ti, id hich. dh: bi helpfulte th. intheirdef.
P P
46,47 I One matter My iow identified_a—diseretetegal: -which-has-raised bi +h bject-of-
48,49 significant publicity-in the BBC Panorama programme and elsewhere _is the claim; arising-out-ofthe
50 Hon dancdiis ty tion} that the Post Office brought concurrent charges of theft and
false accounting against sib-poatnasters when there was no sufficient evidence for a charge of theft,
and the theft charge was only brought to put pressure on the sub-postmaster concerned to plead
51 I guilty to the false accounting charge. As a result of the review I have decided to take the following
steps.
52 (1) I will take advice from specialist criminal counsel as to whether the decision to charge
theft and false accounting could undermine the safety of any conviction for false accounting if
(a) the conviction was on the basis of a guilty plea, following which and/or in return for which
the theft charge was dropped, and (b) there had not been a sufficient evidential basis to bring
the theft charge.
53 (2) If the advice received is that such a conviction could be undermined in those
circumstances, I will ask counsel to review the prosecution file in the cases concerned_to
establish whether, applying the facts and law applicable at the relevant time, there was a
sufficient evidential basis to conclude that a conviction for theft was a realistic prospect such
that the charge was properly brought
54 thave-had h evid. justifiably to-bri + ch: £ theft and fal ti
t ¥ S
¥ iS S S-
+ individuals—tn-th: + Ihavedet dt k-furth. list-ad: fi Jead:
S pect, S
Lb: tert +: hather this-pract Id dofitself_und. +i
ith, £ th, hy D. dit th It of that advice _furth. et i ‘fi
ges Dep S 7 P
tions-fil b.
¥ *
Pp
ii) Horizon
POL00131715
POL00131715
55, 56,57 I TheMy review report recognised team—retes-that; in a system of the age, size and complexity of
58, 59 I Horizon, it wais unremarkable that occasional bugs, errors or glitches were should be-uncovered and
60, 61, 62 I addressed-periodicatly. A limited number efinstances-of specific problemserrers with the potential to
affect branch accounts were brought to the attention of Second Sight during the course of their work,
63, 64, 65 I together with as-were-details of the way in which the Post Office_had addressed these matters’s-
66 I handling-of these. Based on the review it has become apparent that these bugs were capable of having
a generic impact (i.e. of affecting all users of the Horizon system and not only those who had raised
complaints about them). However, the review did not disclose any evidence to suggest that any of
these bugs had been the cause of loss to any sub-postmasters other than those who had raised the
66 I problem. 47th textof thi i ise thet hi Juded that there basi hich.
t d-furth. tion in relation te-these-k
7 SP
67, 68, 69 I Hewever—Nevertheless, thewhile-my review_report suggested that consideration should be given to
whether it would be possible, by analysis of the transaction logs of sub-postmasters who made
complaints, to determine whether or not the matters complained of by each sub-postmaster could
70 show the existence of some other generic bug within the system. % Janes nia ice tae ifice!
ticatiy i Joti +9-th, il. ist fF 4 +h. hth, ydid idk
2 P BA
hether—it Id. ible—t f, dditional testing t I +t that ibility
P S P
comprehensively—Work is now underway to assess if such testing is possible, and if so, to scope the
work that would need to be done.
Further work is also underway to address suggestions that branch accounts might have been remotely
altered without complainants’ knowledge. In particular the security controls governing access to the
digitally sealed electronic audit store of branch accounts over the life of the Horizon system, will be
reviewed.
iii) Training and Support
71 I A consistent theme of the complaints against the Post Office is the allegation that sub-postmasters
were provided with insufficient training to operate the system effectively and/or did not receive an
appropriate level of support while in post.
2\AH ye tes that their ability + h-a-definiti Jusion-in-relation-te-th tt
hampered-bya-number of factors, including the lack of specificity in the allegations made and the
73 I relative paucity of available training records, made it very difficult for the review to determine the
merits of these complaints.:
I have concluded that these issues have already been addressed as comprehensively as is reasonably
possible by both the Post Office and by Second Sight through their investigations of all complainants’
cases. However, I am taking forward one further line of enquiry in relation to the very limited number
of cases where allegations were made of misleading advice being provided by the Post Office’s
helplines.
iv) Investigation of Cases
74 IThe review also looked at My + tudedthat-the Post Office’s investigations of the
75, 76 I complaints_as part of the Mediation Scheme process. It has concluded that the investigations made
77, 78,79 I were detailed and thorough, and leftaving no more than very limited gaps which might now reasonably
POL00131715
POL00131715
be filled by further work. There is, only one further accounting exercise recommended by the review
team, which consists in an examination of the extent of any relationship between unmatched balances
in the Post Office’s general suspense account and branch discrepancies, and independent experts have
been instructed to undertake this examination.
80 I Next steps ¥: king fe dtheR dati Timing:
81, 82 I Folowing-di i — an -I have commissioned independent persons to undertake
83, 84 I the necessary work._I foward —sadam satisfied that they meet the standards of expertise and
independence appropriate to the tasks.
85, 86 II do, of course, share your aimmbition. that matters should be drawn to_a conclusion as soon as
87 I possiblete consistent with ss 4 to-thi ible while having regard
88, 89 I te-the need for the work that remainsit to be done to a high standard. I hope you Hewever-yetwill
understand that, particularly in relation to the further testing of the Horizon system, this work may
90 I take some time. I anticipate am-kepefutthat I will be in a position to report back on the outcome of
this further work during May
91b, 92 I I believe ara-hepefut that the focus and scope of my review to date, together with the further work
93 I which I have now commissioned, will at that time allow me to confirm that the processes designed and
implemented by Post Office Limited to understand, investigate and resolve those complaints were
94 I reasonable and appropriate, and that there are no further enquiries which need to sheuwld-new-be_
undertaken.
95, 96, 97 I Finally, may I mention two other matters. First, and aAs I have noted above; and-as-you-are-aware-a
98 I number of sub-postmasters cemplainants—have made applications to the Criminal Cases Review
99 I Commission for the circumstances of their convictions to be looked into with a view to those cases
100 I being brought back to the Court of Appealinvestigated. That work is on-going and the Post Office
101 I continues to co-operate fully in the process. Second, !r-additier;-+ aed +hat-the Justice
102, 103 I for Sub-postmasters Alliance is reported to have received funding to instigate imvestigate—civil
104, 105 I proceedings against the Post Office. However, altheugh—at the time of writing, no claim has been
106 I issued. [has any letter before claim been received?]
Ola I 4 hopeful thatthe f d-scope-of my-_review to-date,_tegeth: ith the furth: kwhich
hi issi ve) it} alt + fi: that th. desi eb iy Hy ted b:
7 P iP ¥
Pest Offi, Limited t di. tand i rs ts va hs +h, J; ts bhi db
F ie P
iat d-thatth. furth: iri hich should. bi dertak
propriate;
107 I I hope that the above sets out matters satisfactorily. If you would like to discuss the review report with
108, 109 I me, I would be happy to do sodis this report-with ould that be of assist . [Would you
like to offer to provide a copy of the review report? If so, consider whether or not you wish to
maintain lege in the report
Yours etc
[ENDS]
Track Changes
4
© MN DH RW ND
ow wow MNYNNYNNHNNNN B= Basa an aan aw a a
N32 606 0N O89 GK ON FOC GO ®FNODAKR OR AGT
Change
Insert
Delete
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Insert
Delete
Change
Insert
Delete
Change
Delete
Delete
Change
Change
Insert
Change
Delete
Change
Delete
Change
Delete
Delete
Delete
Insert
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
24/02/2016 10:16 AM
24/02/2016 10:15 AM
24/02/2016 10:16 AM
24/02/2016 10:16 AM
24/02/2016 10:12 AM
24/02/2016 10:12 AM
24/02/2016 10:16 AM
24/02/2016 10:17 AM
24/02/2016 10:18 AM
24/02/2016 10:18 AM
24/02/2016 10:18 AM
24/02/2016 10:14 AM
24/02/2016 10:14 AM
24/02/2016 10:14 AM
24/02/2016 03:58 PM
24/02/2016 10:14 AM
24/02/2016 10:15 AM
24/02/2016 10:15 AM
24/02/2016 10:15 AM
24/02/2016 10:19 AM
24/02/2016 10:19 AM
24/02/2016 10:19 AM
24/02/2016 10:19 AM
24/02/2016 10:20 AM
24/02/2016 10:20 AM
24/02/2016 10:20 AM
24/02/2016 10:20 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:21 AM
24/02/2016 10:21 AM
24/02/2016 10:21 AM
24/02/2016 10:21 AM
POL00131715
POL00131715
Track Changes (Continued)
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
ay
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
Insert
Change
Change
Delete
Delete
Delete
Change
Insert
Delete
Delete
Insert
Insert
Change
Change
Change
Change
Delete
Insert
Insert
Insert
Insert
Delete
Change
Change
Delete
Change
Change
Delete
Delete
Change
Change
Insert
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:21 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:23 AM
24/02/2016 10:23 AM
24/02/2016 10:23 AM
24/02/2016 10:22 AM
24/02/2016 10:28 AM
24/02/2016 10:37 AM
24/02/2016 10:30 AM
24/02/2016 10:37 AM
24/02/2016 10:37 AM
24/02/2016 10:38 AM
24/02/2016 10:56 AM
24/02/2016 10:54 AM
24/02/2016 10:54 AM
24/02/2016 10:56 AM
24/02/2016 10:57 AM
24/02/2016 10:57 AM
24/02/2016 10:58 AM
24/02/2016 10:58 AM
24/02/2016 10:58 AM
24/02/2016 10:58 AM
24/02/2016 11:13 AM
24/02/2016 11:13 AM
24/02/2016 11:01 AM
24/02/2016 11:01 AM
POL00131715
POL00131715
Track Changes (Continued)
65
66
67
68
69
70
vA
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
Change
Change
Change
Delete
Insert
Delete
Insert
Change
Change
Change
Insert
Delete
Insert
Change
Insert
Change
Delete
Insert
Insert
Delete
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Change
Move
Change
Insert
Change
Change
Delete
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
24/02/2016 11:01 AM
24/02/2016 11:14 AM
24/02/2016 02:53 PM
24/02/2016 11:00 AM
24/02/2016 03:21 PM
24/02/2016 03:22 PM
24/02/2016 03:22 PM
24/02/2016 03:23 PM
24/02/2016 03:23 PM
24/02/2016 03:23 PM
24/02/2016 03:24 PM
24/02/2016 03:24 PM
24/02/2016 03:24 PM
24/02/2016 03:24 PM
24/02/2016 03:24 PM
24/02/2016 03:25 PM
24/02/2016 03:25 PM
24/02/2016 03:25 PM
24/02/2016 03:25 PM
24/02/2016 03:25 PM
24/02/2016 03:26 PM
24/02/2016 03:26 PM
24/02/2016 03:26 PM
24/02/2016 03:27 PM
24/02/2016 03:27 PM
24/02/2016 03:35 PM
24/02/2016 03:35 PM
24/02/2016 03:37 PM
24/02/2016 03:37 PM
24/02/2016 03:37 PM
24/02/2016 03:38 PM
24/02/2016 03:27 PM
POL00131715
POL00131715
Track Changes (Continued)
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
Delete
Change
Change
Insert
Change
Insert
Change
Insert
Delete
Insert
Insert
Change
Insert
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
Jonathan Swift,
24/02/2016 03:38 PM
24/02/2016 03:38 PM
24/02/2016 03:27 PM
24/02/2016 03:27 PM
24/02/2016 03:38 PM
24/02/2016 03:28 PM
24/02/2016 03:28 PM
24/02/2016 03:28 PM
24/02/2016 03:28 PM
24/02/2016 03:28 PM
24/02/2016 03:35 PM
24/02/2016 03:36 PM
24/02/2016 03:36 PM
POL00131715
POL00131715