A former St Albans minister, who was CEO of the Post Office at the time of the Horizon scandal, has come under fire following the airing of a TV drama.
Reverend Paula Vennells was an associate minister in the Diocese of St Albans before taking up the role of CEO of the Post Office. Her tenure took place during the latter part of the scandal, which saw hundreds of subpostmasters wrongly convicted of theft, false accounting and fraud.
Mr Bates vs The Post Office, which aired on ITV last month, has incited a new wave of criticism towards Rev Vennells. Last month, she handed back the CBE she was awarded in 2019 after more than one million people signed a petition calling for her to do so.
More than 900 subpostmasters across the country were falsely accused and convicted of stealing money between 1999 and 2015. It was later revealed that the funds had actually disappeared due to faults with the company’s Horizon computer system.
The fallout from the scandal included four suicides, the jailing of a pregnant mother, and 33 wrongfully punished victims who have since passed away.
In the Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, January 10, former Tory deputy chair Lee Anderson pressured Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey, who was the Postal Affairs Minister at the time, to resign.
Daisy Cooper, Lib Dem MP of St Albans, spoke to STALBANSnews and said: “The Post Office Horizon scandal is a devastating miscarriage of justice and it’s vital that the government moves quickly so that victims receive the financial redress and justice they deserve.
“At the same time, subpostmasters and the public want to see Post Office and Fujitsu [the creators of the Horizon software] bosses held to account.
“I’m pleased ministers have conceded to me that it was wrong to let Paula Vennells retain a senior government role for several months after the High Court ruling on Horizon.
“Now, with a judge-led inquiry underway, the Post Office must drop its shameful delay tactics, and fully cooperate with the Met Police investigation.
“As we head towards a much-needed general election, I hope politicians will refrain from using this awful tragedy as political football when they should be listening to the voices of the victims.”
The Bishop of St Albans Alan Gregory Clayton Smith, whose father was a retired subpostmaster, has also spoken out about the TV show.
He said: “The recent ITV dramatisation understandably rekindles the suffering and pain of the subpostmasters and their families who are victims of the Horizon IT scandal, and anger in all of us for such a serious miscarriage of justice.
“I hope and pray that the public inquiry will explain fully the sequence of events, provide redress for the victims and hold to account the responsible people and organisations.”
In April 2021, 39 subpostmasters launched an appeal, where judges ruled that cases which relied on Horizon data were not fair trials.
The Bishop of St Albans welcomed the decision of the Court of Appeal.
He said: “As the son of a former subpostmaster, I express my distress at the miscarriage of justice that so many subpostmasters have suffered.
“They and their families are in my thoughts and prayers. I am glad that these and earlier appeals have overturned convictions that have been found to be unjust.
“I am aware that there are still legal processes and inquiries to take place, during which it is right that Ms Vennells stands back from public ministry.”
A spokesperson for the Communication Workers Union (CWU) said: “The CWU subpostmasters branch read the official comments made by The Bishop of St Albans and absolutely shares his expressed hope that the public inquiry will deal fully with all of the events leading to this scandal as well as holding those responsible to account. It should not be forgotten that of course this includes Paula Vennells, who was an ordained minister in the Diocese of St Albans.
“It was right that she stood back from parochial duties when postmaster criminal convictions were overturned in 2021. It is a shame she did not see fit to do that any earlier or indeed to hand back her CBE at the same time and instead chose to wait another three years before she was apparently persuaded to do so by public opinion.”
Photo credit: UK Government
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