A Tory peer and long-standing advocate for victims of the Put up Workplace scandal has mentioned he raised the subpostmasters’ plight with the Labour authorities 15 years in the past however obtained a response that made clear “the federal government wished nothing to do with them”.
Lord Arbuthnot mentioned he was left annoyed on the reply to his 2009 letter to then-business secretary Lord Mandelson, which requested for complaints over the defective Horizon IT system to be investigated.
He mentioned the previous Labour authorities prevented duty over the scandal, after receiving a letter from junior minister Pat McFadden which instructed the issues had been as an alternative a matter for the Put up Workplace.
Lord Arbuthnot advised the inquiry on Wednesday: “It was clear that the federal government was saying it was nothing to do with them.”
Within the 2009 letter proven to the inquiry, Lord Arbuthnot wrote: “There does seem like a major variety of postmasters and postmistresses accused of fraud who declare that the Horizon system is accountable, together with not less than two in my constituency.
“Given the extent of influence this has on the private lives of those postmasters and postmistresses and their households, usually involving chapter and important monetary hardship, I needs to be most grateful in the event you would let me have your feedback on what may be finished to research the matter.”
Lord Arbuthnot advised the inquiry: “I had wished what had appeared to me to be one thing that was doubtlessly an injustice to be sorted out and because the authorities owned the Put up Workplace I assumed that the federal government could be within the place to type it out. However they had been saying, ‘No, not me, guv’.
“I used to be annoyed and aggravated. It was clear that the federal government was saying it was nothing to do with them and I didn’t see at that stage the place I might take it.”
Lord Arbuthnot in contrast the state of affairs to the proprietor of a harmful canine refusing to take duty for his or her pet.
He mentioned: “What this ‘arm’s size’ association basically means is that the federal government is refusing to take the duties that go along with possession and I don’t assume it’s proper to do this for numerous causes.
“You can’t say that the harmful canine has an arms-length relationship with you if the harmful canine behaves badly. The entire strategy of arms-length management is a harmful one, it appears to me.”
The Tory peer additionally criticised the behaviour of the Put up Workplace, claiming that it had intimidated sub-postmasters by telling them they had been the one folks being affected by shortfalls within the Horizon IT system.
“There was one thing in the back of my thoughts which continued to bother me which was the variety of these individuals who had been being advised ‘you’re the solely individual that is taking place to’,” the Tory peer mentioned.
“That struck me as profoundly fallacious as a result of at first, it was clearly disprovable, they weren’t the one folks it was taking place to. Second, it was isolating these sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses so they might not get help from others in the identical place.
“And third it had a component of intimidation about it. All of which set the Put up Workplace and its manner of working with its sub-postmasters in a foul gentle.”
Lord Arbuthnot mentioned he was “not glad” with the “brush off” he obtained from former Put up Workplace chief government Paula Vennells to his letter elevating issues about complaints from subpostmasters concerning the Horizon system.
In his witness assertion to the inquiry, the Tory peer mentioned that Ms Vennells had written an “unsigned letter” of ninth January 2012, which mentioned there was no proof to help these allegations and he or she was assured that the system was sturdy and match for objective.
He wrote: “At this stage I didn’t know the reality of the matter however it was clear {that a} detailed investigation was wanted. I assumed it was conceivable however unlikely that every one of those allegations had been fallacious — there have been too many for it to be a coincidence, and by this time I had come throughout three in my very own constituency (from my imprecise reminiscence I later got here throughout a fourth).
He added: “The subpostmasters I had met appeared to me to be transparently trustworthy. I don’t keep in mind anybody suggesting to me that the introduction of a brand new computerised accounting system had uncovered beforehand hidden fraudsters…I used to be subsequently not glad with the brush-off I used to be getting by the use of reply to my letters.”
Lord Arbuthnot’s testimony follows explosive allegations made by Alan Bates, former subpostmaster and head of the Justice For Subpostmasters Alliance, who mentioned the Put up Workplace is an “atrocious organisation” which was run by “thugs in fits” and was keen to do “something and every part” to cover Horizon IT failures.
The inquiry continues.