Post Office scandal: outrage as Channel 4 News reveals covert recordings
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 มี.ค. 2024
- There's growing anger among politicians following the secret recordings - aired in our exclusive report on this programme last night - that prove Post Office bosses covered up the Horizon IT scandal for years.
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The audio reveals that executives knew as far back as 2013 that subpostmasters' accounts could be accessed remotely and altered without their knowledge. Pressure is also growing for the Post Office to face criminal action.
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People need to go to prison over this, pure and simple.
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
Some of the middle of the totem pole will be thrown under the bus those at the top will be feather bedded by the two tiered justice system
@@tomricketts7821 Exactly this.
No one went to prison after the whole western world’s economy was brought to its knees by the rogue bankers. So don’t hold your breath.
@@tomricketts7821 nah they need to drop this one, act like they the Mafia and they need to Jimmy from Goodfellas on her, clear house, no witnesses. Get a big name like this 1 , 15 years in Holloway, will do a lot to clear up the PO scandal.
Paula and the post office management need to be in prison themselves
they should be under remand, with tags and alike (sorry u can only sit at the back of the church)
Bettcha Paula will become a Nun.. Like mary
The "post office"? Seriously? You mean, like, EVERYONE?
@@LordOfLight Yes, the buildings and the trucks too..
Totally agree , though history shows us this is unlikely to happen. They`re happy to jail the poor, even when innocent whilst those in power with money and influence are rarely held to account
@@LordOfLight Yes they are going to build 10 new prisons!
Paula Vennels was in charge and it was her who dismissed and buried the report about the unreliability of the Horizon system. She deliberately tried to cover up the faulty system and blame the Postmasters. She needs to be put in jail first and foremost.
And her predecessors
She needs brough to court to face a trail and justice immediately
@@user-sl4qe5fb8p Edit: 1) brought. 2) trial.
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
if it was ANYONE else then that would already be happening
Corporate crooks do not go to prison in the UK , the establishment protects their own .
The UK has to see justice done, if it is not to remain a systemically corrupt jurisdiction.
Lying to Parliament. Failure to follow the Disclosure Act. Malicious prosecution of Post Masters that they knew were not guilty. There are bound to be other miscellaneous charges but Vennels and others must go to jail. There can be no other outcome. If it means dozens of people are charged, then so be it. .... But there is always the small matter of The Lodge.....
Paula is a woman so no chance.
We're governed by crooks carrying 'stay-out-of-jail' cards.
The postmasters and postmistresses did time and they were innocent. These people are guilty. They should be locked away for a very long time.
Poor man commits no crime goes to jail rich commits crime gets a knighthood.
Do you know how to punctuate? Or is this a foreign concept to you?
@@PatrickMcAseyaww your mum must be so proud of you. Well done. Fixing the world one step at a time
@@Shsjier That's irrelevant, isn't it? The questions is: What do _you_ think? Or do you have a mind of your own?
@@PatrickMcAsey @PatrickMcAsey I think that people who correct grammar, punctuation etc. On a TH-cam comment section are the scum of the earth
@@PatrickMcAsey I'm a copywriter, yet I understood.
Your problem isn't other people's punctuation, it's your own arrogance and ego.
How has she not had all her assets stripped and been jailed yet!?
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
Because we live in one of the most corrupt countries on Earth.
Vennells still has her millions in bonuses.
She's a Tory.
@@darthwiizius More like, she is a fraud.
Vennells should be charged now. And an awful lot of other Post Office and Fujitsu senior people, the lawyers who killed both parliament and the courts, the investigating officers and all involved in this vile scandal.
What is worse though is that such behaviour happens in other former public services and even large private companies. The corruption at the "top" of our society is truly horrendous and scandalous.
Those responsible must both go to prison and be stripped of their ill-gotten wealth.
A truly fat chance of anything 'proper' being done: most of the "guilty parties" will never face justice.
Very well put, superb ❤❤❤
Yep, the DWP is corrupt too. They employ their family members and cover each others' arses when complaints are made, with no punishment for when they cause disabled people to take their own lives. Rotten country "led" by an utterly immoral government.
You're right. And they wonder why we no longer trust any of them!
It endemic! And it will never change! Time to dole out our own justice I think! 😡
Absolutely disgraceful. To realise that the PO used OUR money to persue cases that they knew were flawed is beyond the pail.
All those involved should face criminal charges AND be liable for repayment to the exchequer and the victims of all monies owed. 😡
They spent over £100 million on legal fees. That is astonishing.
of our money
Ya taxpayers money keeping d legal system raking it in 😢😢
They shouldn’t mind paying out £100 million to the people who got criminal records, and more for those wrongfully imprisoned…
The tactic has been to crush the subpostmasters with financial power. And we've all paid for it 😕
Taxpayers oaid to hide their GUILT now we need redress fir that money , by seeing them in JAIL
Paula Vennells should be in prison, she lied to the public, to the MP's and people were wrongfully conficted for it. nothing short of 15 years would be justice.
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
And profiting from it aswell 😒
But she is a woman so no chance.
15 years? For sending others to prison for decades.
Not a chance.
There is a well publicised email sent by Vennells asking to know whether there was remote access to Horizon. If she didn't follow this up, then she's at the very least criminally negligent.
She doesn't come across as very bright but unfortunately she probably had superior legal minds protecting her from getting her hands dirty.
Those responsible for the cover up should go to prison for the pain and suffering they have caused not to mention the millions of taxpayers money they have wasted
When Vennels is finally sent to prison,she should be made to sew mailbags. That would be justice.
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
She will probably think 3 hail Mary's will clean the slate.
She will never be prosecuted. Give an example of such senior person going to prison. It’s just not how the uk works.
There's so much money behind this scandal none of these people will go to jail 😢
Since Geoffrey Archer, I can't think of anyone in power/politics that has been jailed.
Prison for senor ex management is the only way forward.
The shear audacity of the Post Office to throw their own staff under the bus is both disgusting and harrowing when you consider how many people took their own lives due to their lies…
Paula Vennells and her cohorts need to go to prison!
Willingly prosecuted 100s of sub post masters, perjury, lied to government, misled investors on the liabilities and therefore the value of the organisation and shares.
These are serious criminals that should receive long sentences.
Any talk of self regulation should be viewed with serious scepticism.
The taxpayer will also pick up the cost for pension scheme shortfalls. I hope executives are also stripped of their assets.
The 'Proceeds of Crime Act' should kick in after someone is convicted of a crime.
The Vicar of Diddly has cleaned up the money she received during this scandle, so now it's cleaner than as shirt thats been washed consecutively by every Chinese laundry in England.
I am a former software engineer. The big question which has gone unasked is who manipulated the subpostmasters' accounts in Fujitsu and what did they gain from doing that. Those of us in the know about software systems now see clearly that there was what we call a 'back door' into the software. Why was it there, who used it and for what gain? The money from the subpostmasters' accounts obviously went somewhere and my bet is it was into someone's pocket.
@@sueburgess847but it doesn’t answer the commenters question…..where did the money refunded by post masters (through false allegations) …where or to whom did that money go?
@@bobwishart8780 According to the drama, which I assume is factually correct, it went into Post Office profits and hence, I guess, higher bonuses for the senior management.
@@breamoreboy I didn't see the drama, but if as you say it's factually correct, that adds another layer of despicability to the PO management. They saw some people die and others lose everything, just to fatten a balance sheet? That really is Capitalism gone wrong.
The depressing thing is that I believe all they gained was not having to admit that the system wasn't fit for purpose. The subpostmasters were prosecuted for fictitious shortfalls brought about by bugs in the code. As others on here have said, though, it's astonishing that the investigators were incentivised by bonuses.
@@John-ks6si Bugs in the code, or changes being made from people working for Fujitsu as they had complete access to the system, or both? One of the people who has featured strongly in this appalling saga has stated that she saw the figures on her screen change in front of her eyes, when she wasn't inputting anything.
Thank you channel 4. Performing an absolutely vital role in society. Real journalism.
Rarely seen in the UK. Very well done!
Utterly disgraceful
We well the jailings begin
hard to believe she was actually a CoE Priest !
Lock up time
@@brianlopez8855 Awful lot of hypocrisy in the CoE, we only have to look at it's current leadership, also in it's silence over the lockdowns 3 and 4 years ago when people suffering, not able to bury their loved ones with dignity, church mice comes to mind.
Paula Vennels, minister of the church, doesn't look good for the Church of England.
She is a false church leader and should be sacked!
She doesn't look good, plain and simple.
@@markskoda8862 Yeah, mole rats ain't 'pretty' animals.
The fact that the government has already given preferential consideration to Fujitsu with regards to the digital ID contract tells you all you need to know. Neglect and incompetency runs deep.
Who do you think is behind Common Platform, the program forced in a real hurry in to every criminal court. The CPS and Police refuse to use it or share access to their systems through it.
There is NO audit control, anyone can change or read and delete ANY criminal case, documents and hearing details without trace. There is also remote access to the system.
The government contract is open ended because it was agreed the software will never be completed.
No wonder people wanted to force this system in, a system that doesn't work and causes people to be kept in prison when they shouldn't be. How convenient to mess up cases or delete documents...
And brown envelopes
They have a current contract?!!!
@@sadjaxx Can you not see the problem with that????!
Life in jail. She is responsible for every suicide. We must not let her get away with this.
Why is this woman not in prison or is lying to the government okay?
The CEO & Board of Directors Have Been Payed Their Bonuses The Sub Postmasters have NOT Been payed Their Compensation ! EVEN NOW !
The amount of money spent on lawyers could easily have gone on financial redress for the postmasters and this would be over.
They spent over £100 Million in lawyers fees but then want to give peanuts to the people the lives they destroyed. Sickening
And let’s not forget Vennals left the PO with a big bung only to take up another cushy job. Not only should she be prosecuted, but efforts should be made to recoup salary and payments. It is inconceivable she did not know about the issues, but even if she didn’t, there was a complete failure of corporate governance and the buck stopped with her.
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
Villains every one of them
Has anyone been compensated yet?
Have any of the executives gone to prison yet?
This women carried out miscarriage of Justice, covered up & lied.....She should be made to pay back every penny, plus compensation. And serve all the time other's did in prison plus some for her lies ! Absolutely appalling
The public need to see justice in action. Police please explain reason why Paula Vennells has not already been charged with perverting the course of justice?
I guess we all know that ABSOLUTELY no one in the top echelons of the P.O. will ever be prosecuted, let alone recieve a prison sentence, yet there isn't a decent person in the whole country that doesn't think those involved shouldn't be..
Never a truer word spoken. It's a reflection of today's society. It makes me sick to the core.
Keep d peasants in line
we know nothing of the sort
The government and the rich all look after eachother. " The people " are just bugs in their way.
This is a absolute disgrace
A mass cover up on record
People still need to be brought to justice
It's disturbing that British justice is based on your bank account and not evidence.
Why has Vennells not been charged with any criminal offences yet ?
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
.there is more chance of her getting a massive bonus for being a Beautiful looking woman than her going to prison.
@@BLUESKY-zt1nv Harsh but true.
Malfeasance in Public Office for starters.
If the charged Vennells today people would start to ask, why haven't they charged people involved in PPE scandals, People involved in water company scandals, Heath care rip offs. HS2 debacle.To name but a few. Just too many people at the top making to much money. Someone has to keep these people in champagne and mansions and the UK general public are the one's they have chosen. For God sake UK, stop feeding the beast. PS, Met Police, The proverbial, Let's hide it under the rug.
Clearly the corporate structure is still holding firm within Post Office….delay, demand verification, deny, refuse……it’s astonishing that this corporation has not been thoroughly excised, and been shut out of the compensation process to the postmaster claimants. It should be an independent body that is authorised to expedite the claims, compensation and finalisations of the claims…because nobody can trust PO to be fair.
Really good reporting on this tragic criminal abuse of power.
How is it that Vennells avoids a jail sentence after all the lying she has done over many years? Vennells should be brought to court by the government immediately.
She will escape jail .the establishmet eill make sure of that.she is one of their own
People were convicted and their lifes upturned. This is simple if you can convict post master's we can convict those responsible for the coverup. Those people prolonged the suffering trying to save their own skin. This country needs to see some justice.
Well said
Well said.❤❤❤
This really goes to prove how flawed the the current form of Government is along with the Justice system. These victims will never be compensated for their losses or pain and suffering.
I concur ❤❤❤
Nothing can compensate these innocent people their lives were destroyed d only thing I would wish for all d crooks involved should be behind bars sadly I can't see that happen these big boys control everything 😢
Sunak here is a chance for you. Stop Vennells pension payments. Write to her and tell her to pay back all bonuses she should never have received and also tell her she need to pay personally reparations to the post masters and their families
They need lots more than what Vennels is worth.
The sub-postmaster convictions started in1999/2000 funning up to 2010, and Vennells did not become CEO of the PO until 2012. What about those running the PO in the period 2000 - 2010 and those in government at that time?
So has Fujitsu been investigated to see if monies were redirected? They should lose all government contracts, while the inquiry needs to give recommendations in the use of remote access and back doors to such software.
Further, government needs to investigate whether this is an issue in other systems.
A chap in my club worked with the PO 10 years back. He said it was common knowledge Horizon was useless and senior PO management were lying.
I don’t doubt it for one minute they just keep digging the hole deeper 😮😮😮😮
Venells will no doubt bleat her ignorance of this recording
Let her bleat all she wants from a prison cell.
And poor old ED Davy 😮😮😮😮
I blame mainly the justice system. How could people be sent to prison without any thorough investigation into the supposed evidence? Don't allow the authorities to whitewash this justice system failure.
Channel 4 did brilliantly on this
Thats why the tories want to shut channel 4 news!
Justice delayed is justice denied!
Post office as broken down
@@tonygunn6889Imagine trying to recruit staff. .Kinda going strong now and put past behind
The legal system is wonderful in the UK (lots of paperwork). means more hours
Why do those involved in the Post Office management need to hide behind the enquiry? They know whether or not they sent the innocent to prison. All they have to do is, say, yes we knew we were sending and had sent the innocent to prison. Simple. Honest. But, they have never been honest.
It's not complicated:
Huge compensation for those who suffered.
Prison for those responsible.
Compensation not paid for by the taxpayer
Why is a class action against Fujitsu and Post Office not being proposed?
738 convictions. It was hardly a blip. Did they really believe 738 sub postmasters were stealing from them. It is a total joke if it weren’t so serious.
Of course they knew.
How on earth did she go on to become a vicar????
End all food and drink deliveries into the Borough of Westminster.
Stop feeding the beast.
They should go to prision not living the high life. Call this justice with our pathetic government dragging their feet
Prison sentence need handing out to these crooks
But Paula is a woman so no chance.
Aint gonns happen
Vennels - a good example of a pompous relic
In 2017, Paula Vennells was an Anglican minister and reached the shortlist of three for Bishop of London. After relinquishing her clerical duties in 2021, she remains an ordained priest. This is possibly why her word was so readily but mistakenly accepted.
The recent Fujitsu UK gov contract for digital ID needs to be reconsidered, in the light of these recordings.
Paula Vennells.... lovely bit of jail time.
JAIL TIME!
Has Vennells been defrocked for her lies which wrecked the lives of thousands, not just the postmasters but their families.
Yes she is no longer welcomed as a lay minister
Seems there needs to be the people that knew about this should be locked up they are criminals
There is no appetite to lock these people up. I have watched all of the witnesses so far in the enquiry. Many of them should be in jail already.
On several counts
Every single post I’ve read is demanding her arrest and conviction 👍
Isn’t she a friend of Welby?
Apparently woke Welby has abandoned her.
Well he has no backbone
WHERE DID THE MONEY GO?
In any business, the CEO is responsible, she should be in jail
Jail time, for all involved.
If they were willing to let people serve time...then the same cruelty applies.
Paula Vennels, Adam Crozier, Tim Parker, Ed Davey and many others are keeping a very low profile in recent months. I wonder why?
The person in charge was an Anglican Priest, who could a someone from the church lied so blatantly.
Have you looked at welby. He lies that he's a Christian every day
The people involved should be named shamed and locked up.
The idea that Venels didn’t know is ridiculous. CEOs take personal interest in this kind of issue. She would have had it directly from Fujitsu.
Paula you piece of work
Utterly disgraceful.
Refreshing to see at last a great piece of investigative journalism for a change. More of it please and more of these protected criminals held to account. One rule for us and another for us.
The Met have had 4 years and have, in that time, managed to interview only 2 people. That is a classic 'kick the can down the road' tactic, what are they waiting for? Those involved to put themselves beyond the reach of the UK courts? If the Met want to be taken seriously they need to pull their finger out and get those involved charged.
Vennels is supposed to be a person of faith. She's nothing but a liar and a hypocrite. Considering the lives she's ruined ,I don't know how she lives with her conscience.
So should all those who had a higher level job and a direct influence on this scandal should be arrested and charged
Well 😊😊
This is fraud. Simple and clear.
This demonstrates they knew, they spoke of it and yet continued with the system and PROSECUTIONS.
They must go to court.
Some Post office sub masters took their own lives, others went to jail and lost their livelihoods as a result of this mis courage of justice. Paula Vennels was at the heart of it , she was told that Fujitsu’s had manipulated the data to protect themselves, she then protected herself by covering the whole thing up, she should be tried in the high court like any other person and serve the correct amount of time as a murderer.
Oh you can bet your last £1 on it that no one from the top will ever go jail and if they do it will be so short that it will be like a holiday
How the CEO had the sheer face to accept an OBE while spending £100M of taxpayers’s money to jail people that she knew were likely innocent… jail is necessary to restore public confidence.
'Public confidence' - is that a joke?
People have short memories. I remember the Conservative scandals involving MPs and their expenses, the Labour scandals involved second, and third-homes all mortgages paid by the tax-payer.
There is zero confidence in politicians for decades now.
Anyhow, not my problem anymore. I emigrated 10 years ago, but it is sad to see a once-great nation reduced to simple avarice.
Also, thank you Channel 4 news for yet again showing that someone in the UK is at least still doing proper journalism.
The post office should never have been sold off. Shame on the Lib Dem’s and tories. Barb
All this happened while in government hands.
Royal Mail was sold off , not the Post Office .Get your facts right .
The Post Office was never sold, it is still Government owned. Royal Mail was sold ,which has nothing to do with the present scandal. A Labour politician, Tony Benn, bears some responsibility for Horizon, because he rescued ICL from bankruptcy.
Think you are confusing The Post Office and the Royal Mail which are two separate companies.
The Post Office was not sold off, and it is still owned 100% by UK Government. This will mean that when compensation is eventually paid to the sub post masters, it will be out of the pockets of the British taxpayer.
The letter & parcel delivery service Royal Mail was privatised by the conservative Government in 2013 but retained 30% of the company before selling the remaining stake in 2015.
Um, what have the lib Dems got to do with it?
People's lives were ruined because of what they knew and did. All of those responsible should be prosecuted.
0:44 that ginger bloke wants jailing
Lol I see what you mean 👍
This guy has spent the last 10 years, knowing that something that had happened was wrong, but being restricted by non-disclosure agreements. I expect that now he has been able to include it in his evidence, so there is no longer a restriction on him. I get the impression that he is a bit annoyed and will be very happy to dump any of the post office management in it. One thing about Paula Vennels is that even if she didn't know originally, when she found out that there was a problem with the convictions, she had an obligation to reveal what had happened. The post office is going to do what the government wants it to. If they haven't already, they will be getting a completely new management team, who will be told that they are expected to play by the rules. The post office doesn't have the money to pay restitution, so the government will be paying their share.
It doesn't matter if Vennals knew or not, she should have, she gets paid for knowing what's going on, she's the skipper and she's responsible.
An absolute scandal!!
It tells you all you need to know about many public services, involved in scandals, that management thought they could behave like this under the arrogant assumption that they would never be answerable or accountable for their criminal actions.Why would they have behaved like this otherwise? They had everything to gain in the way of juicy salaries and annual bonuses,but everything to lose from revealing the rotten IT system and questioning the PO contract with Fujitsu. This cover up went on for decades, with no one being able to break the conspiracy of silence and lies, because the post office was a revered,trusted and reputable organisation,being protected by vested interests.A fish rots from the head down.....just like the post office.Fujitsu's management, meanwhile, have just as many questions to answer for their reprehensible behaviour.The public will demand nothing less than prison sentences for all those involved in this conspiracy of silence that destroyed many innocent people's lives.Justice demands it, if there is anything left of the credibility of so called British justice.
What more evidence do you require, an arrest warrant should be issued to make sure all parties are protected.
Fujitsu needs to be held to account too.
Anybody who lied and are still alive should be charged! Regardless of who they are or how high up in the Post Office. They did not give any breaks to the people who had the post office sites so they are not entitled to any breaks themselves. Any taxpayers money spent on litigation for Post Office Employees must have been known and approved by the Government.
Why, in the reporting of this story, is there no mention of Private Eye's reporting of it? Way ahead of everyone else.
Lock her up!!! Why hasn’t she been arrested
If there's such a thing as genuine British justice remaining in our country, ex P.O. CEO Paula Vennells should be arrested; questioned; charged if any unearthed crimes meet the appropriate legal threshold and then sent for trial at Crown court. If found guilty after a trial, one would imagine a custodial sentence would be the most appropriate punishment.
Ed Davey should not be allowed to blame the post office for his incompetence
How were these recordings obtained? Because whoever had access to them should have come forward sooner. Their silence meant that people suffered for longer than they had to.
Why should we be shocked anymore. We know Britian has gone down the pan
100 million wasted, outrageous when they know it is a lie
Some lost everything including their homes, those responsible should be stripped of all their assets as part of the compensation package and prison sentences should follow.
No one will go to prison. Those responsible will remain free, and people will continue dying and never seeing the proper amount of reimbursement and compensation - note, those two are separate amounts. Government is complicit; politicians like Sunak are rich enough to not care, they don’t suffer, they have nothing to lose. I don’t believe any of that is fair, but I believe that is how it will pan out.
Paula Vennels… “We are bound by the disclosure act to make known anything we come across that might contribute…” These disclosures prove without a shred of doubt she lied to Parliament. Heads must roll.