The Post Office’s Horizon system is “very robust” and the only scandal is that the company has failed to properly defend it, according to a man tasked with representing sub-postmasters.
George Thomson, the former leader of the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters (NFSP), said in a long-running investigation: “The Horizon system is not the scandal, the post office’s stupidity on steroids in handling the situation is the scandal. “
Between 1999 and 2015, more than 900 sub-postmasters were prosecuted for offences, including theft, based on incorrect data from the Horizon IT system.
Christopher Head, a former sub-postmaster, described Mr Thomson’s views as “utterly abhorrent”.
David Enright, a lawyer who has represented hundreds of people in connection with the Post Office, said Thomson’s “flat Earth defense of the horizon computer system defies credulity.”
Mr Thomson said the number of sub-postmasters prosecuted was only a “small percentage” of the 100,000 people who have used Horizon over 25 years.
Horizon is a software system for tasks such as accounting and inventory that was installed in all post offices from 1999 onwards.
Sub-postmasters complained about bugs after wrongly reporting shortages – often amounting to many thousands of pounds – but their concerns were dismissed.
Mr Thomson said the Post Office’s “mishandling of the situation” has been “so catastrophic” for sub-postmasters, the brand and the Royal Mail group.
It means the Post Office “has not been able to defend a robust Horizon computer system,” Thomson said.
He added that the NFSP had not been notified by the Post Office of bugs in the system.
When questioned at the inquest on Friday, Mr Thomson’s answers were greeted with surprise and anger by some sub-postmasters in the room.
When asked by Julian Blake, counsel to the inquiry, why the NFSP had not defended the sub-postmasters, Mr Thomson insisted the federation had advocated on their behalf but did not have the resources for a legal defence.
The NFSP has received millions of pounds in payments from the Post Office.
The investigation was shown an email from August 2013 that outlined plans for a 15-year deal between the Post Office and the NFSP.
It included annual payments starting from £500,000 in 2013-14 and up to £2.5 million between 2017 and 2028.
Mr Thomson denied the association became “too close” to the Post Office or “awash with cash”.
Mr Head said: “I think his evidence so far shows him to be the man he is. He has shown no remorse, no compassion, absolutely no sign of any apology for his or the NFSP’s part in the scandal and the damage caused by this scandal.
“The testimonies so far are absolutely disgusting.”
The NFSP was a trade union – formed in 1897 by a group of sub-postmasters to help their profession – that was converted into a trade association a decade ago after the Post Office failed to recognize the group for collective bargaining.
Mr Thomson was general secretary of the MOB between 2007 and 2018.
He said: “We worked closely with the Post Office because we both needed a successful franchise – that’s the reality.”
The Horizon scandal was thrust back into the spotlight at the beginning of this year by an ITV drama broadcast: Mr Bates vs the Post Office.
It followed the story of Alan Bates, a former sub-postmaster and campaigner who took the Post Office to court, and a number of sub-postmasters who were wrongly accused of stealing money or falsifying records.
He led a campaign for justice for subpostmasters for 20 years and was knighted this month.
Mr Thomson criticized Sir Alan and the media for “portraying Horizon as not fit for purpose”.
“This position is not only factually incorrect but has also damaged the brand and post offices across Britain,” he said.
“My support for Horizon has never wavered.”
He said that although bugs had been found in the software, this did not mean Horizon was not systemically robust.
He added that he was “furious” at the Post Office for taking people to court when they knew “people had access to your computer”, adding that the “shenanigans” were “bizarre”.
Former sub-postmaster Nitin Pandit said the post office and the NFSP “had only one standard answer: that the system is robust.”
He said himself and former colleagues “are all very angry.”
“Even today we are in the investigation and many of us are absolutely furious,” he said.
“The intention was not for the NFSP to work hand in hand with the Post Office, it was intended for them to protect us,” he added. “Where were they?”