News

Exclusive: The legal flaw and trial by computer error

Published

2 years ago

January 5, 2024

EXCLUSIVE: The Herald exposes the legal flaw that led to injustice for Sub Postmasters by our Chief Writer, John Coles and The Herald.Wales Team

IMAGINE being arrested and charged with a crime.

Now, imagine that charge going to trial.

You have led a blameless life, been well-known in your community, and you are entirely innocent of the allegations you face.

You are convicted and sent to prison.

Meanwhile, the person who claims you stole from them takes steps to recoup its money and plunge you into bankruptcy. You lose your business, your home, and your good name.

And you are innocent.

And to make it worse, the person who claims you stole from them has good reason to believe you did not commit any theft and they have lost no money.

They have the evidence to cast doubt on your conviction, but it’s never disclosed to the court or your defence team.

It sounds like something out of fiction. It sounds like the beginning of the plot of The Fugitive.

But it’s real.

And it happened.

It happened here in Pembrokeshire and across the United Kingdom to hundreds of others.

TAXPAYERS FOOT POST OFFICE’S BILL

That is precisely what happened to sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses when the Post Office covered up disastrous IT system failures.

And, make no mistake, the Post Office knew what it was doing at the time. It wasn’t a case when the evidence of a computer fault became obvious later.

The Post Office knew there were problems with the Horizon system supplied by Fujitsu. It commissioned reports showing the system was flawed. And Post Office senior management decided to bury them.

It’s an obscene abuse of power for which taxpayers will now foot the bill.

In September, the government announced that every Post Office Horizon scandal victim would receive £600,000 compensation.

Every sub-postmaster whose wrongful conviction relied on evidence from the Horizon computer system is entitled to the money, with “no ifs or buts”.

Eighty-six wrongful convictions have been overturned.

Many postmasters, wrongfully imprisoned for fraud or false accounting, were shunned by their communities or even took their own lives.

At least 30 of the victims have died before seeing justice done.

555 claimants took part in successful group litigation against the Post Office

The Post Office made puny offers to settle litigation with another 2,200 victims;

And the executives who oversaw this scandal have, by and large, walked away with large payoffs, large pensions, honours for their public service and into well-heeled retirement or other well-paid jobs.

A PROBLEM WITH PRESUMPTION

The deliberate failure to disclose evidence that tends to prove the innocence of the accused is – thankfully, despite exceptions and soap operas – seldom an issue in the UK’s courts.

But the accused in the Horizon scandal faced an even greater hurdle than failures in disclosure.
The law provides that evidence provided by a computer is accepted as true unless the accused can produce evidence showing its system is somehow flawed.

This is called “presumption”: something is deemed to be what it states it is on the tin (a functioning and accurate computer system in the Post Office case) unless evidence rebuts the presumption.
This makes sense only so long as a rebuttal is realistically achievable. If it is not, the presumption will inevitably lead to miscarriages of justice.

The more complex the computer system, the less accessible its technical data are, and the more the presumption weighs down on the wrongfully accused. Few barristers are sufficiently qualified in information technology to have more than a mechanical understanding of IT processes (I press a button, the computer turns on, open a computer program, and type a document). And, even if they did, barristers are not expert witnesses or Perry Mason.

THE INNOCENCE TAX

The limits of Legal Aid demonstrate the inequality of arms between the prosecution and defence in criminal cases. Prosecution barristers in criminal law might not earn the big bucks. Still, they’ll be on more than a defence barrister funded by Legal Aid. Prosecutors won’t have to apply for funding for expert witnesses or forensic accountants. The whole force of the state lies behind every prosecution barrister. In most criminal trials, an overworked Legal Aid defence practitioner instructs a barrister and hopes for the best.

And then there’s the “innocence tax”.

Suppose you are acquitted or acquitted after a successful appeal. In that case, you will almost certainly never recover the money you had to contribute to the costs of defending you. That can run into tens – if not hundreds – of thousands of pounds.

Let’s cut this down:

The Post Office knew or reasonably should have known its IT system was defective;

Despite that, it supported the prosecution of subpostmasters and pursued thousands more through the civil court;

Those convicted had no hope of successfully challenging the evidence against them because the law denied them that opportunity;

Those pursued and harried into bankruptcy were in the same position as those prosecuted;

Even when they were vindicated, all of the subpostmasters affected faced financial ruin due to the costs of proving they were not guilty of theft or liable for computer errors.

And if they were made bankrupt, the Insolvency Act means the first call on their compensation goes to their Trustee in bankruptcy.
Private Eye editor Ian Hislop once remarked: “If that’s justice, I’m a banana.”

The Chair of the Inquiry, Sir Wyn Williams KC, into the Post Office’s conduct has already reported on its conduct in damming terms and urged both it and the government to compensate those hit by the scandal now.

The Post Office and its executives oversaw the largest miscarriage of justice in modern times.
Those who presided over the cover-up must face the consequences of their actions and inaction. Those who knew the IT system was defective and connived at obscuring the truth must face criminal charges.

Charity

Vincent Davies raises £13,682 for air ambulance charity

Published

3 hours ago

February 2, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Independent Haverfordwest store backs lifesaving crews with year of community fundraising

A WEST WALES department store has raised more than thirteen thousand pounds for a lifesaving emergency service after a packed year of community fundraising.

Staff at Vincent Davies Department Store collected £13,682 for the Wales Air Ambulance Charity, after voting the organisation their Charity of the Year for 2025.

The independent retailer organised events throughout the year, including an Easter bingo, bake sales, quizzes, raffles, staff sales, Christmas jumper days and a festive wreath-making workshop. Charity jam jars placed in Café Vincent also helped gather steady donations from customers.

One of the most popular attractions was the store’s charity singing penguin trio, which drew smiles from shoppers of all ages and boosted collections.

Sarah John, Joint Managing Director at Vincent Davies, said: “Raising £13,682 for the Wales Air Ambulance Charity is something we are extremely proud of at Vincent Davies Department Store. As a director, it’s wonderful to see our community come together to support a charity that makes such a lifesaving difference.”

The air ambulance is consultant-led, delivering hospital-level treatment directly at the scene of serious incidents and, when needed, transferring patients straight to the most appropriate specialist hospital.

Working in partnership with the NHS through the Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service, crews can provide advanced critical care including anaesthesia, blood transfusions and even minor surgical procedures before reaching hospital.

Operating across the whole of Wales, its teams travel the length and breadth of the country by helicopter and rapid response vehicle to reach patients quickly in both rural and urban areas.

This is not the first time the Haverfordwest store has backed the cause. In 2016, staff previously raised £5,831 when the charity was also chosen as their beneficiary.

Mike May, the charity’s West Wales Regional Fundraising Manager, said: “We are so grateful to Vincent Davies Department Store for raising an incredible amount for our charity. Throughout the year they put on a variety of different events and what a successful fundraising year it was.

“The charity needs to raise £13 million every year to keep our helicopters in the air and our rapid response vehicles on the road. By raising £13,682, the staff and customers have played an important part in saving lives across Wales.”

The store says it will announce its Charity of the Year for 2026 in the coming weeks.

Crime

Police assess complaints over Mandelson–Epstein links

Published

3 hours ago

February 2, 2026

Tom Sinclair

Met says allegations will be reviewed to see if criminal threshold is met following release of US court files

SCOTLAND YARD is reviewing a series of complaints alleging possible misconduct in public office after fresh claims emerged linking former UK ambassador Peter Mandelson to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The Metropolitan Police Service confirmed it has received “a number of reports” following the publication of millions of pages of material by the United States Department of Justice, and will now decide whether any alleged conduct reaches the level required for a criminal investigation.

Commander Ella Marriott said the force would assess each report individually, stressing that a review does not automatically lead to formal proceedings.

The documents, widely referred to as the “Epstein files”, appear to show Mandelson corresponding with Epstein while serving as business secretary during the government of Gordon Brown at the height of the global financial crisis.

According to reports, Epstein was allegedly given insight into internal policy discussions, including proposals around banker bonus taxes in 2009 and details of a eurozone bailout package shortly before it was announced publicly.

Payments questioned

Bank records cited in the US disclosure reportedly show payments totalling 75,000 US dollars made to Mandelson between 2003 and 2004. It is also claimed Epstein paid for an osteopathy course for Mandelson’s husband.

Mandelson has denied any wrongdoing and said he has “no record or recollection” of the alleged transfers.

On Sunday he resigned his membership of the Labour Party, saying he did not want his continued association to cause further difficulty for the party.

In interviews, he dismissed suggestions that Epstein influenced his decisions as a minister and said nothing in the released files pointed to criminality or misconduct on his part.

Pressure mounts

The political fallout has intensified, with Downing Street confirming Keir Starmer has asked Cabinet Secretary Chris Wormald to carry out an urgent review into Mandelson’s historic contacts with Epstein while in office.

Brown has also called for an examination of whether any confidential or market-sensitive information was improperly shared during the financial crisis.

The case is the latest in a series of controversies linked to Epstein’s long-standing relationships with powerful figures on both sides of the Atlantic.

Police emphasised that no charges have been brought and that Mandelson is not currently under criminal investigation, but said the complaints process would be handled “thoroughly and impartially”.

Community

Councillor meets chief constable to address Monkton and Pembroke concerns

Published

4 hours ago

February 2, 2026

Tom Sinclair

COUNTY COUNCILLOR Jonathan Grimes has met with the new Chief Constable of Dyfed-Powys Police to discuss crime, antisocial behaviour and wider community issues affecting residents in Pembroke and Monkton.

Cllr Grimes, who represents Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, said the meeting followed his invitation for senior police leaders to visit the area and hear first-hand about local concerns.

The Chief Constable, Ifan Charles, attended alongside officers from the Pembroke Neighbourhood Policing and Protection Team, meeting the councillor in Monkton for what were described as open and constructive talks.

As part of the visit, they also spoke with Monkton Priory Community Primary School headteacher Dylan Lawrence and Danny Nash from Pembrokeshire County Council Housing Services to gather views from education and housing professionals.

Discussions covered a range of issues raised by residents, including domestic abuse, drug and alcohol misuse, antisocial behaviour and environmental concerns such as littering, dog fouling and dangerous or inconsiderate driving.

Cllr Grimes acknowledged recent police successes, particularly in tackling drug-related activity, but said enforcement alone would not solve the area’s challenges.

He said closer cooperation between the police, council services, schools and the wider community would be needed to deliver longer-term improvements.

The councillor added that he plans to encourage residents to form a local community group in the coming weeks, aimed at developing practical solutions and strengthening partnership working across the area.