WBON0001956
WBON0001956
From: Paul Inwood +
To: "Loraine, Paul"
: "Parsons, Andrew" <
, Rodric Will
: GRO j Rodnic illiams
Subject: RE: Official Secrets Act
Date: Mon, 23 May 2016 08:55:36 +0000
Importance: Normal
Attachments: AGREEMENT_23790170(60)_NTM1_ROLL_OUT_-
"Standard_Conditions_ Main (STANDARD_ON_SITE)_- CLEARED_FOR_USE_-
_27.05.14.DOCX
Inline-Images: image011 jpg; image012.jpg; image013.jpg; image014.jpg; image015.jpg; image016.jpg;
image001.jpg; image002.jpg
‘Porter, Tom
Hello Paul,
See my responses below to yours.
Paul Inwood Postmaster Contracts and Policy Development Manager
15t Floor Customer Support Centre
Post Office Limited, Finsbury Dials
20 Finsbury St London EC2Y 9AQ
From: Loraine, Paul [mailto!
Sent: 20 May 2016 13:33
To: Paul Inwood
Cc: Parsons, Andrew; Porter, Tom; Rodric Williams
Subject: RE: Official Secrets Act
Paul
I hope you are well.
Have you had the chance to catch up with your colleagues about any examples of the Official Secrets Act's application
to SPMRs?
Yes, I mentioned this to Mike Granville who manages the relationship with our shareholder last week. I'll follow this up
with Mike and come back.
I also had another couple of follow-up queries which I would be grateful for your help with if possible, please.
1. Has POL ever taken steps for a breach of the OSA by a SPMR and, if so, what were the circumstances? I
recall you told me this is not routine but if you have any examples, it may provide us with a better
understanding of how the OSA applies in practice. I've never heard of such a case and I've been closely
involved with agents contract for ~15 years. If there had been, I'm sure Rod or Jessica Madron would be able
to recall or find out.
WBON0001956
WBON0001956
I have been looking again at the SMPR contract (the version I have is the consolidated version dated January
2008).
Section 16, paragraph 1 of the contract states under the heading Divulgence of Official Information: “the
unauthorised disclosure, or use, of any information or document which has come to the knowledge of a
SPMR or sub Post Office assistant through the work of his PO branch is forbidden, Any such disclosure may
render the offender liable to prosecution.”
The contract suggests that disclosure of any information or documents that come to the knowledge of an
SPMR through their work may leave them liable to prosecution (Freeths make this point in their Letter of
Claim, though they quote a different version of the contract). This wording does not sit comfortably with the
idea that prosecution would only flow from disclosure of “official information” as defined by the OSA. Do you
have any ideas as to why the drafting is so wide? It may be unintentionally wide (ie. it may be intended to only
apply to official information as the heading — “Official Information” — suggests). Either way, before we respond
to Freeths, it would be useful to understand what section 16 of the contract is trying to achieve and why it
appears to limit disclosure of all information.
I wasn’t involved in the drafting of $16, and cannot find any record of the evolution of that section. If I was
seeking to re-draft it today I would make it very broad so that it covers commercially sensitive information
that would not necessarily be caught by OSA, and other information that is not necessarily in the public
domain, for example personal information provided by customers and clients.
Perhaps a useful comparator would be the drafting in the more contemporary ‘Network Transformation’
contracts, example attached. As you'll see, the existing obligations are quite broad and onerous.
Many thanks
Paul
Paul Loraine
Solicitor
Bond Dickinson LLP
www.bonddickinson.com
PROUD TO SUPPORT
EXPORTING
IS
GREAT
BRITAIN & NORTHERN IRELAND
From: Paul Inwood [mailto GRO !
Sent: 10 May 2016 12:
5
To: Loraine, Paul
Cc: Parsons, Andrew; Porter, Tom; Rodric Williams
Subject: RE: Official Secrets Act
Thanks Paul. I’ll discuss here and then with Rod, verbally.
WBON0001956
WBON0001956
Paul Inwood Postmaster Contracts and Policy Development Manager
ES eee
15 Floor Customer Support Centre
Post Office Limited, Finsbury Dials
From: Loraine, Paul [mailto:
Sent: 10 May 2016 12:08
To: Paul Inwood
Cc: Parsons, Andrew; Porter, Tom; Rodric Williams
Subject: Official Secrets Act
Paul
It was good speaking to you — thanks for your time.
By way of a quick introduction (and so you have our details), my colleagues Andy and Tom are also working on the
group action. No doubt you will deal with us all at some point.
We'll look at the OSA at this end, informed by the helpful description you gave of how the OSA obligations apply in
practice to a modern SPMR (ie. that they apply narrowly in relation to internal stakeholder information, eg. budget-
related information /changes in vehicle excise duty / interest rates).
Separately, as we discussed, if you could speak to your colleagues about any further examples of the OSA’s
application and come back to me, that would be very useful.
Thanks
Paul
Paul Loraine
Solicitor
Bond Dickinson LLP
Follow Bond Dickinson:
Sin}
www.bonddickinson.com
WBON0001956
WBON0001956
PROUD TO SUPPORT
EXPORTING
IS
GREAT
BRITAIN & NORTHERN IRELAND
The information in this e-mail and any attachments.is.confidential and may be legally privileged and protected by law.
paul.inwood. L Andrew. Parsons G
rodric.william only is authoris6@t6 ACCESS THIS E-mail and any attachments, IfVou are not
paul.inwood — GRO Andrew.Parsons} GRO \_Tom.Porter} GRO }
rodric.william:
lease notify Paul.Loraine! Jas soon as possible and delete any
prohibited and may be unlawful
Any files attached to this e-mail will have been checked by us with virus detection software before transmission. Bond
Dickinson LLP accepts no liability for any loss or damage which may be caused by software viruses and you should
carry out your own virus checks before opening any attachment.
Content of this email which does not relate to the official business of Bond Dickinson LLP, is neither given nor
endorsed by it.
This email is sent by Bond Dickinson LLP which is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales under
number OC317661. Our registered office is 4 More London Riverside, London, SE1 2AU, where a list of members’
names is open to inspection. We use the term partner to refer to a member of the LLP, or an employee or consultant
who is of equivalent standing. Our VAT registration number is GB123393627.
Bond Dickinson LLP is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
SEIS SISISISICIGISIOR ICI IC GIOR I CCEA AC ICI A CAE ACAI ROA A IR EAA A RR A A A RR a RG
This email and any attachments are confidential and intended for the addressee only. If you are not the
named recipient, you must not use, disclose, reproduce, copy or distribute the contents of this
communication. If you have received this in error, please contact the sender by reply email and then delete
this email from your system. Any views or opinions expressed within this email are solely those of the
sender, unless otherwise specifically stated.
POST OFFICE LIMITED is registered in England and Wales no 2154540. Registered Office: Finsbury
Dials, 20 Finsbury Street, London EC2Y 9AQ.
Fe SIGS ASE SI SIA SIEIGI IG ACESS ACI AGESIGISI ACI GI ARISIGA ACR AGI ACACIA ACK ca aca aa a kok