7m
12 Feb 2024

Government signed off on Post Office executives bonuses

Chief Correspondent

We know it’s been called the biggest miscarriage of justice in British history.

We know it ruined the lives of thousands of subpostmasters.

But there is still plenty we don’t know about the Post Office Scandal – questions that are currently being probed at an Inquiry.

When it was revealed that Post Office executives were being paid bonuses just to take part in that inquiry, there was outrage.

Now, we can reveal that the government signed off on those bonuses.

Produced by Nanette van der Laan.

A government spokesperson said:

“We reject the claims made.  It’s important to clarify that while ministries approved the overarching structure of the bonus scheme, the responsibility for assessing and determining the fulfilment of specific criteria for these pay-outs rested solely with the Post Office Remuneration Committee.

“When we were made aware of this issue, we immediately called for an explanation from Post Office as to how this mistake occurred and commissioned an independent review. We agree with the report’s recommendations, and we’re taking steps to improve Post Office’s governance and getting compensation to victims of the Horizon scandal.”