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Message
From: Callard, Richard - UKGI [/O=EXCHANGELABS/OU=EXCHANGE ADMINISTRATIVE GROUP
(FYDIBOHF23SPDLT)/CN=RECIPIENTS/CN=E4F7AFEDS7944EF 7 BFB36DOAC6A81B1F-RICHARD.CAL]
Sent: 03/04/2020 07:53:34
To: Cooper, Tom - UKGI [/o=ExchangeLabs/ou=Exchange Administrative Group
(FYDIBOHF23SPDLT)/cn=Recipients/cn=97888b27d7034e80ab21de4583305d52-Thomas.Coop]
Subject: RE: Chat with Susannah
'm glad you talked to Paula, thanks for doing that. Hope all is well your end.
R
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allard, Richard - UKGI:
Cooper, Tom - UKGE.
02 April 2020 19:03
es, Tim - UKG'
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latson, Richard - UKGI:
Subject: RE: Chat with Susannah
I did speak to Paula the day the SC was cancelled. She was quite upset with how badly she feels she is being treated.
Very useful note. Thanks Richard. We should follow up on your points when we have a new date
Tom
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Subject: Chat with Susannah
: Callard, Richard - UKGI
‘cooper, Tom - UKG'
02 April 2020 14:34
McInnes, Tim - UKGIf
atson, Richard - U
Tom / Tim
I talked to Susannah Storey yesterday on the whole sparrow thing. Key points:
She hadn’t heard of the issue before she joined the board
But she does remember it becoming an increasing thing after joining. Remembers Paula indicating that there
was nothing much to see here, it was a small number of subpostmasters, long time ago, the business was getting
assurance etc (she couldn’t remember who that assurance was from, could have been Second Sight or the Links
advice)
NED’s and Alice increasingly worried at the seemingly slow pace of the execs response and Arbuthnot had
started to fan the flames. The board felt this was mischief making that was fanning the flames and was
becoming a populist cause
Board understood the serious ramifications if the system did have issues (because people would therefore have
been wrongly accused) but got the sense from the exec that the system was robust.
On Second Sight, she can’t remember who proposed that they be used — she thought they were suggested or
known by Arbuthnot and the Board were content to use them given on that basis
Suggested I talk to former CoSec (Alwen Lyons) and former NED (Alasdair Marnoch — then head of ARC) who
might remember the chronology and reasoning. She also suggested I should talk to Jeff Triggs (Slaughters
partner, was the then stand in GC — we came across him quite a lot during our RM days as they used
Slaughters). Perhaps we should discuss.
On the mediation scheme, doesn’t remember govt having a particular view on it (i.e. doesn’t recall them
particularly pushing) and thought if anything it was the board that wanted to see it happen
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e Didn’t remember (as suggested by Batten) that Alice’s appointment had any connection with the mediation
scheme (I think Peter had suggested that her joining was dependent on the scheme being launched or
something)
e She felt that when she looks back, she felt the Board did the rationale logical thing based on the facts at hand at
that stage. She didn’t feel uncomfortable as a board member in what they were doing, thought if anything they
were erring on the side of caution (i.e. taking it more seriously)
@ On Paula (who she happened to have a coffee with recently): Was in a bad way, feeling vilified, felt the new CEO
had thrown her under a bus, still feels that it was a tiny proportion of SPMs affected. Felt that other retailers
have similar policies, POL not a particular outlier. [Tom — did you speak to Paula in the end?]
Happy to discuss.
R
Richard Cailard I Executive Director
UK Government Investments
1 Victoria Street I London I SW1H OET
GRO