There was no dialogue of how a lot Fujitsu, the maker of the defective Put up Workplace software program Horizon, ought to contribute to compensating its victims, the corporate’s Europe chief govt has mentioned.
The corporate has been in dialogue with the federal government about paying in direction of its proposed billion-pound spend on redress for victims of the pc programme which falsely generated monetary shortfalls.
However there was no point out of a determine for the Japanese firm to pay, European CEO Paul Patterson instructed the inquiry into the Horizon scandal.
Greater than 700 sub-postmasters working Put up Workplace branches throughout the UK have been wrongfully convicted of theft and false accounting whereas others wracked up giant money owed, misplaced houses, grew to become unwell, died by suicide and left communities after they did not repay imagined shortfalls.
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When requested what Fujitsu was going to compensate, Mr Patterson repeatedly declined to place ahead a quantity however mentioned the corporate would pay in direction of an present authorities compensation scheme.
Put up Workplace needs to make use of Horizon ‘system not meant to be persevering with‘ for 4 years
Regardless of the scandal and sub-postmasters persevering with to expertise points with Horizon the programme remains to be being utilized by the Put up Workplace and can proceed for use.
It has requested for a four-year extension of its Fujitsu contract, in line with Mr Patterson.
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There’s “nervousness” about any extension at Fujitsu, Mr Patterson mentioned as if Horizon continues for use “there is an increasing risk of failure of the infrastructure that could result in adverse impact in the delivery of services to the public”.
“I am very worried about it,” he mentioned. “This system is not meant to be continuing and it’s not had any material investments in the last four years.”
In actual fact, Mr Patterson was unable to say if the software program was dependable for accounting functions, including he was “not qualified to answer” the query.
‘Bureaucracy stopping redress’
Renewed consideration has been paid to the failures of Horizon and related injustices, described as the largest miscarriage of justice in UK historical past, after the airing of the ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Put up Workplace in January 2024.
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Conservative Celebration chief Kemi Badenoch mentioned it was this drama that led to “urgency” to hurry up funds to affected sub-postmasters however that she got here up in opposition to “bureaucracy” that received in the way in which of redress throughout her time as secretary of state on the Division for Enterprise and Commerce.
Cost delays
Many victims are but to obtain redress. A sub-postmaster on the inquiry on Monday, Terry, instructed Sky Information he nonetheless hasn’t obtained any cash regardless of it being almost 20 years since he left his Put up Workplace.
He has heard nothing since he and his spouse met Mr Patterson in August. “He hasn’t followed up on the hope that he instilled in us,” his spouse Cindy mentioned.
Terry mentioned he felt let down by the institution, not simply Mr Patterson.
