Post Office boss under investigation as top brass squabble over compensation and blame

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The pinnacle of the Submit Workplace is the topic of an inside investigation, a former chair of the organisation instructed a Commons committee on Tuesday, highlighting the disarray on the prime of the group.

Throughout a unprecedented listening to in parliament, Henry Staunton additionally reignited a livid row with the enterprise secretary Kemi Badenoch, saying he had been the sufferer of a “smear marketing campaign” after he stated he was instructed to delay funds to subpostmasters.

However lead campaigner Alan Bates, a former subpostmaster, instructed MPs the federal government ought to simply “get on and pay folks”. He additionally described the Submit Workplace as a “useless duck” and stated it needs to be offered off for £1 to Amazon.

Greater than 700 subpostmasters had been prosecuted by the Submit Workplace between 1999 and 2015 due to Fujitsu’s defective Horizon system made it seem cash was lacking from their branches.

A whole lot, together with Mr Bates, whose story was instructed within the ITV drama Mr Bates vs the Submit Workplace, are nonetheless awaiting compensation.

In a typically explosive proof session, Mr Staunton instructed MPs on the enterprise and commerce committee that he stood by his declare a prime Whitehall official instructed him to stall on compensation payouts.

That was disputed by Submit Workplace CEO Nick Learn, who instructed MPs he didn’t consider anybody on the firm was instructed by the federal government to decelerate funds.

Mr Staunton, who was sacked by Ms Badenoch final month, has stated the transfer would assist the Tories “hobble” into the election.

In response, Ms Badenoch accused him of a “blatant try to hunt revenge following dismissal”.

However Mr Staunton instructed the committee: “Why does every part stay so sluggish? I’ve spoken up on issues of real public concern, have been fired, and am now topic to a smear marketing campaign.” He additionally stated that Mr Learn had threatened to stop as a result of he was “sad together with his pay”.

He additionally rejcted Ms Badenoch’s claims he was below investigation, saying: “That is an investigation, not into me, that is an investigation… into the chief govt Nick Learn.”

He stated that an 80-page report, ready by the corporate’s human assets director about Mr Learn, contained only one paragraph on his behaviour, claiming “politically incorrect feedback attributed to me which I strenuously deny”.

The report was written after Mr Learn “fell out” with the HR director, Mr Staunton stated. He additionally instructed MPs that Mr Learn had threatened to resign on quite a lot of occassions – simply an hour after Mr Learn denied he had ever tried to stop.

Their testimony left MPs scratching thier heads, with committee chair Liam Byrne saying Mr Staunton gave “bombshell revelations a few boardroom that’s in disarray, a chief govt [Nick Read] that’s below investigation and a chief govt who has sought to resign, although he instructed us on oath that he has not”.

In one other twist, a director on the Submit Workplace, Ben Tidswell, instructed workers after the listening to: “To my data he has by no means tendered his resignation.”

Mr Staunton stated the 80-page doc “alleges… that Nick was going to resign as a result of he was sad with this pay”.

He added that he himself “will need to have had 4 conversations when he stated he was going to chuck it in”.

One MP on the committee, Tory Jonathan Gullis, known as the admission a “shambles” and stated: “There could also be one other drama: Mr Learn and Mr Staunton vs the Submit Workplace.”

The division for Enterprise and Commerce later confirmed that Mr Learn was below investigation, however stated it could await the end result “earlier than making any additional judgement”.

In his proof, Mr Learn additionally warned appropriate laws should be put in place if “mass exoneration is the appropriate factor” in relation to convicted subpostmasters – including that the method “could properly” lead to responsible folks being absolved.

Mr Bates additionally instructed MPs he had thought-about getting all the previous subpostmasters concerned within the preliminary Excessive Court docket case to “stand as MPs when the subsequent election comes”, including: “Then we’ll kind it out as soon as and for all.”

In the meantime, Mr Bates instructed the committee that the federal government ought to “pay” the subpostmasters affected. “We preserve coming again to this time after time after time – pay folks.

“There’s quite a lot of distractions, quite a lot of different issues introduced up, thrown up on a regular basis – however simply get on and pay folks.”

He stated: “My private view about [the] Submit Workplace is it’s a useless duck and it has been for years, and it’s going to be a moneypit for the taxpayer within the years to come back.”

He added: “You need to promote it to somebody like Amazon for £1, get actually good contracts for all of the serving sub-postmasters and inside a number of years you’ll have among the finest networks round Britain.”

Mr Bates additionally stated he may see no finish to the scandal: “It’s very disappointing and this has been happening for years, as you properly know, and I can’t see any finish to it.”