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Message
From: Cooper, Tom - UKGI [/O=HMT/OU=EXCHANGE ADMINISTRATIVE GROUP.
(FYDIBOHF23SPDLT)/CN=RECIPIENTS/CN=8D968D43E33749AE9ES9F9C9350E69D5-COOPER, THOMAS (TCOO]
Sent: 26/02/2019 18:57:54
To: Tolhurst, Mpst (E ambert, Gavin (Advanced Manufacturing and Services)
cc: Aldred, Tom - ‘
Subject: RE: URGENT - Commission for KT.
Attachments: 20190118 POL CEO recruitment sub - revised timetable.docx
Tom
High level answers in red as follows:
e How can we gain access to information about the judgement before it is made (in the same way that Post Office
board members can)? The Minister would like to ensure this is done in time for the Horizon litigation case.
- Access to the ruling before it’s made public is only possible with the approval of the judge handling the
case. It’s too late to get that now given the ruling is coming shortly. Seeking permission from the judge for
this hearing was considered but we were advised by the legal teams at POL and in UKGI that it isn’t
straightforward, would be unusual and may not be granted. We agreed to revisit this in relation to the
upcoming hearing and can provide the Minister with legal advice on the merits. What has been agreed with
Post Office is that a briefing on the decision will be available as soon as the decision has been made public and
this briefing would be available to BEIS. In the meantime we will provide a briefing on the issues at stake in
the hearing, possible outcomes and where there might be potential for appeal if the outcome is negative.
e Is it possible to put a 6-month review clause into approval of interim CEO of Post Office? Can we write into the
contract that the position is for a fixed period in order that POL have a date to work towards for the permanent
position and it doesn’t slip on indefinitely? How much oversight does the law allow us of key appointments at the
Post Office?
- I believe it should be possible to have a fixed period for the interim appointment but I don’t think it’s
advisable. The Chairman is very motivated to make an appointment of a strong candidate and the process is
already under way. Until the new CEO is in post, there needs to be an acting CEO to be in charge of the
company and it would not be wise to remove the acting CEO during that period unless the acting CEO is not
performing. Experience with appointments is that delays are most likely to stem from the approvals process
for appointments and pay within HMG rather than on the company side. If there is delay on the company side
it will most likely be because it isn’t possible to attract quality candidates (unlikely because Post Office has
many attractions for a CEO candidate) or the company isn’t able to find a suitably qualified candidate at the
package being offered (this is more likely - as we mentioned, we are already on notice from HMT that it will
not be easy to get approval even for a package benchmarked to the lower quartile). My suggestion here is that
we keep the Minister closely informed of how the recruitment is progressing rather than seeking to limit the
acting CEO’s period of appointment
On oversight, the appointment of the Company’s CEO, CFO and NEDs all require SoS approval
e What are the powers of the Secretary of State for BEIS vis-a-vis the Post Office?
© How is the Board appointed? What oversight does the Perm Sec have in this process?
- As mentioned above the CEO, CFO and NEDs require SoS approval. In addition to the CEO, one of the NEDs is
completing his second term in September and these appointments will be made in line with HMG guidelines
including a selection panel led by Tim Parker, the Chairman, as well as opportunities for Ministers to put
forward potential candidates. The process is as set out in the attached sub which has already been approved
© Appointments of senior staff in POL
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- All other appointments in the company are made by the company itself. There is a Nominations Committee of
the Board that leads on this and takes the decisions on such appointments
e The Minister requested more detail and timeframes for the recruitment process.
- The attached sub includes an indicative timetable
In addition, the Minister would like briefing to cover the following topics:
e BEIS and UKGI teams to feed into hypothetical UQ rebuttals and answers on upcoming court ruling by Midday
Friday 1 March. We need to be prepared with these materials in advance of it hitting the media- we should
therefore prepare a rebuttal and answer for each of the most likely scenarios. These can then be tweaked on the
day. You can find UQ templates here. The Minister would like to see a copy of the Post Office’s risk table as part of
this briefing.
- OK
e _UKGI Postal Team to provide a written brief for the Minister on upcoming court case by Monday 11 March.
- The Minister will recall that she had a verbal briefing for the previous trial in addition to a written briefing. This
was because much of the information relating to the case is legally privileged. In addition the facts in this
hearing relate to the operation of the Horizon system and there is a large amount of quite technical
information. We will provide a written briefing as requested and would be happy to arrange an additional
verbal briefing if desired
Tom
Tom Cooper
Director
UK Government Investments
1 Victoria Street I London I SW1H OET
From: Tolhurst, Mpst (BEIS) [mailtoi....
Sent: 26 February 2019 18:01
Te mbert, Gavin (Advanced Manufacturing and Services) <._..........$ GRO... Cooper, Tom - UKGI
Subject: URGENT - Commission for KT
Importance: High
Hi Both,
Thank you for attending the meeting earlier with the Minister — it was really helpful to have your insights. As you will
know, the Minister is planning to speak with the Secretary of State tomorrow at 10:00 regarding the Post Office. There
were a few questions that the Minister wanted answers to before this meeting. I would be grateful if you could provide
high level answers to the following questions ASAP or by latest 09:45 tomorrow, 27 February 2019:
« Howcan we gain access to information about the judgement before it is made (in the same way that Post Office
board members can)? The Minister would like to ensure this is done in time for the Horizon litigation case.
e Is it possible to put a 6-month review clause into approval of interim CEO of Post Office? Can we write into the
contract that the position is for a fixed period in order that POL have a date to work towards for the permanent
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position and it doesn’t slip on indefinitely? How much oversight does the law allow us of key appointments at the
Post Office?
«What are the powers of the Secretary of State for BEIS vis-a-vis the Post Office?
© How is the Board appointed? What oversight does the Perm Sec have in this process?
© Appointments of senior staff in POL
e The Minister requested more detail and timeframes for the recruitment process.
In addition, the Minister would like briefing to cover the following topics:
¢ BEIS and UKGI teams to feed into hypothetical UQ rebuttals and answers on upcoming court ruling by Midday
Friday 1 March. We need to be prepared with these materials in advance of it hitting the media- we should
therefore prepare a rebuttal and answer for each of the most likely scenarios. These can then be tweaked on the
day. You can find UQ templates here. The Minister would like to see a copy of the Post Office’s risk table as part of
this briefing.
e _UKGI Postal Team to provide a written brief for the Minister on upcoming court case by Monday 11 March.
Please get in contact if you have any further questions.
Kind Regards,
Tom
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