On Wednesday Lord Arbuthnot set out how attempts by MPs to get an investigation going in the 2010s were thwarted by the Post Office. The former Conservative MP said James said concerns about reliability of faulty Horizon computer system were “brushed off”, and accused the company of running a “behind-the-scenes deception process”.
Sir Anthony Hooper, the former senior judge who chaired the mediation panel in the early 2010s to try to resolve claims between the justice for subpostmasters campaign and the Post Office also appeared on Wednesday, describing it as “the greatest scandal that I have ever seen”.
Yesterday the inquiry heard a range of corporate oversight failures, and former Post Office executive David Smith apologised for sending an email saying the conviction of a pregnant branch owner-operator who was subsequently jailed and then exonerated was “brilliant news”.
Former Post Office chair Sir Michael Hodgkinson also offered an apology yesterday, but his words came after a passage in which Sam Stein KC skewered him for his lack of curiosity in the way in which the company he chaired was prosecuting people. Asked “What did you do to investigate that the Post Office was properly prosecuting its own members?”, Hodgkinson could only reply “I didn’t do anything.”
And so to today. Alan Cook, the former managing director of Post Office who went on to chair the insurer Liverpool Victoria, will appear.
After that we will see the former chief executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier. Crozier was also once in charge of ITV, whose drama did so much to draw attention to the scandal earlier this year, but which notably omitted any reference to its former chief. Crozier, who headed Royal Mail when it owned the Post Office between 2003 and 2010, will provide detailed testimony about his actions for the first time.
Yesterday, retired judge Wyn Williams who is chairing the inquiry, asked to move the start time forward from 10am to 9.30am, as there is a lot to get through. The hearings are streamed on video, and I will bring you the key lines as the emerge.
from 0.2% to 0.3%.
Liz McKeown, an ONS director of economics statistics, said: “The economy grew slightly in February with widespread growth across manufacturing, particularly in the car sector. Services also grew a little with public transport and haulage, and telecommunications having strong months.
“Partially offsetting this there were notable falls across construction as the wet weather hampered many building projects.”
The UK met the technical definition of recession after contracting in the third and fourth quarters of last year. An end to the slump will require a continued expansion in March to meet a quarterly return to growth.
You can follow reaction to that news live with my colleague Graeme Wearden: UK GDP grows in February, suggesting economy is escaping recession – business live
disclosed a catalogue of attempts to sabotage his two-decade fight.
On Wednesday Lord Arbuthnot set out how attempts by MPs to get an investigation going in the 2010s were thwarted by the Post Office. The former Conservative MP said James said concerns about reliability of faulty Horizon computer system were “brushed off”, and accused the company of running a “behind-the-scenes deception process”.
Sir Anthony Hooper, the former senior judge who chaired the mediation panel in the early 2010s to try to resolve claims between the justice for subpostmasters campaign and the Post Office also appeared on Wednesday, describing it as “the greatest scandal that I have ever seen”.
Yesterday the inquiry heard a range of corporate oversight failures, and former Post Office executive David Smith apologised for sending an email saying the conviction of a pregnant branch owner-operator who was subsequently jailed and then exonerated was “brilliant news”.
Former Post Office chair Sir Michael Hodgkinson also offered an apology yesterday, but his words came after a passage in which Sam Stein KC skewered him for his lack of curiosity in the way in which the company he chaired was prosecuting people. Asked “What did you do to investigate that the Post Office was properly prosecuting its own members?”, Hodgkinson could only reply “I didn’t do anything.”
And so to today. Alan Cook, the former managing director of Post Office who went on to chair the insurer Liverpool Victoria, will appear.
After that we will see the former chief executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier. Crozier was also once in charge of ITV, whose drama did so much to draw attention to the scandal earlier this year, but which notably omitted any reference to its former chief. Crozier, who headed Royal Mail when it owned the Post Office between 2003 and 2010, will provide detailed testimony about his actions for the first time.
Yesterday, retired judge Wyn Williams who is chairing the inquiry, asked to move the start time forward from 10am to 9.30am, as there is a lot to get through. The hearings are streamed on video, and I will bring you the key lines as the emerge.
GDP rise is just 0.1%
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There isn’t any business scheduled in any of the country’s legislatures today, however that doesn’t mean the diary is empty. Alan Cook and Adam Crozier are witnesses at the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry, and both were senior leaders at the Post Office and Royal Mail during the time the scandal was unfolding. There is likely to be especially keen interest in the appearance by Crozier, former ITV CEO, and a person who now acts as chairman of both Whitbread and BT Group. That is expected to start at 9.30am.
It is Martin Belam here with you today once more. I do try to read all your comments, and dip into them where I think I can be helpful, but if you want to get my attention the best way is to email me – [email protected] – especially if you have spotted errors/typos/omissions.
Source: theguardian.com
