The scandal dates again to 1999 and noticed greater than 700 subpostmasters get prosecuted by the Submit Workplace.
With tons of of legal convictions handed out between 1999 and 2015, it was later discovered that that they had been wrongfully convicted resulting from inaccurate information supplied by the Horizon system.
The 2025 inquiry seeks to uncover the small print of the scandal, which have been dropped at public consideration extra prominently because of ITV’s drama Mr Bates Vs The Submit Workplace.
Here’s a timeline of key occasions from the scandal.
Timeline of the Submit Workplace Horizon IT scandal
The Horizon IT system begins for use in a gradual rollout throughout British Submit Workplace branches.
Subpostmaster Alan Bates first experiences points with the Horizon IT system, complaining to Submit Workplace administration that the Horizon system was unreliable, noting that its reporting amenities didn’t permit tracing of occasions behind shortfalls.
He asserted that it was unsuitable that operators have been obliged to make good on shortfalls brought on by the software program, with him and his employees making 85 calls concerning Horizon in a two-year interval.
Alan Bates’s contract is terminated after he refused to just accept legal responsibility for the shortfalls within the accounts at his Llandudno department in North Wales, as soon as once more citing flaws within the Horizon system.
Later in April 2024 throughout the Horizon IT public inquiry, Bates could be proven inner Submit Workplace paperwork through which his termination was resulting from him being “unmanageable”, with notes referring to Bates as “scuffling with accounting”.
East Yorkshire subpostmaster Lee Castleton was discovered to have a £25,000 shortfall at his department. The following authorized battle would in the end make him bankrupt.
Pc Weekly journal breaks the story of seven subpostmasters starting their battle for justice, together with Alan Bates.
The eye on the scandal sparked Bates to name a gathering of affected subpostmasters within the Warwickshire village of Fenny Compton, which round 25 subpostmasters attended.
This was the early begin of the group often known as the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance.
Pregnant subpostmaster Seema Misra, who ran a Submit Workplace in Surrey’s West Byfleet, is awarded jail time, following accusations of stealing £74,000.
Paula Vennells takes on the function of chief government of the Submit Workplace.
Submit Workplace boss Paula Vennells asserts that there is no such thing as a proof of miscarriages of justice whereas addressing the enterprise choose committee.
In the identical yr, the Submit Workplace paused prosecutions of subpostmasters.
A bunch of 555 subpostmasters launch authorized motion in opposition to the Submit Workplace for alleged miscarriages of justice.
After two years of authorized preventing, a Excessive Court docket decide dominated that Horizon contained quite a few “bugs, errors and defects”. This led to a “materials danger” that shortfalls in Submit Workplace department accounts have been brought on by the system.
The Submit Workplace agreed to pay out £58 million to the 555 subpostmasters, whereas Vennells is made a CBE.
The Submit Workplace doesn’t oppose 44 appeals of convicted subpostmasters.
The federal government units up a statutory inquiry in search of to uncover the failings of the Horizon system and the way the wrongful convictions of subpostmasters happened.
The Court docket of Enchantment quashes 39 wrongful Crown Court docket convictions.
The Authorities pronounces that each wrongly convicted subpostmaster can be supplied £600,000 in compensation every.
In the identical month on January 9, Paula Vennells voluntarily palms again her CBE.
ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Submit Workplace airs for the primary time between January 1 and 4, capturing public consideration on the scandal.
Chairman Sir Wyn Williams started publishing early sections of his report wanting into the human price of the scandal, the ultimate conclusions of that are anticipated to be made public on the finish of 2025.
