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Sir Keir Starmer has been dragged into the Post Office scandal after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) revealed it had prosecuted postmasters while the Labour leader was in charge.
The CPS said on Wednesday night that it prosecuted 11 cases that “involved evidence connected to Horizon” – three resulted in convictions while Sir Keir was in charge.
It turns the focus of the scandal to the Labour leader, after days of outrage at former Post Office boss Paula Vennells and Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey.
Labour said Sir Keir was unaware of any cases being prosecuted while he was director of public prosecutions (DPP).
Keir Starmer said the Post Office scandal was a ‘huge injustice’
(PA)
But he has previously told Sky News that he “carries the can” for mistakes made while he was DPP. It opens the Labour leader up to questions about why he did not intervene in the cases, and attacks over his involvement in the scandal.
Errors made by Horizon software, which was made by tech firm Fujitsu and used by the Post Office, led to the wrongful conviction of more than 700 people over false accounting and theft between 1999 and 2015.
The renewed focus on the scandal follows the recent broadcast of ITV drama, Mr Bates vs the Post Office.
Addressing the scandal in parliament, Sir Keir said: “It is a huge injustice; people lost their lives, their liberty and their livelihood, and they have been waiting far too long for the truth, for justice and for compensation.”
A spokesperson for the Labour leader said during his time as chief prosecutor “no cases” relating to Horizon were brought to his desk.
The spokesperson said: “The scandal that's emerged is one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British history and Labour has been calling for swift exoneration and compensation for the victims.
“It's vital that all action is taken to right these wrongs. Labour's focus is on playing our part in making sure this injustice is never repeated.”
During Sir Keir’s time as DPP, the CPS handled more than 4 million cases.
And while the CPS said the “vast majority” of cases against postmasters were private prosecutions, it said on Wednesday it had found “a small number” of CPS cases prosecuted based on evidence connected to Horizon.
A spokesperson said: “We’ve worked extensively and identified a small number of CPS cases which involved evidence connected to Horizon.
“In these cases, we have written to those defendants to disclose information so they could pursue an appeal.”
It argued cases involving the CPS were taken forward in good faith based on evidence provided by the Post Office and the police.
In 1999, Horizon, a defective Fujitsu IT system, began incorrectly reporting cash shortfalls at Post Office branches across the country. The accusations tore people’s lives apart, with many losing their jobs and homes.
Several people took their own lives due to the stress.
To this day, not a single Post Office or Fujitsu employee has been held to account over the scandal, much less faced criminal investigation. At least 60 of the victims have died before finding any justice at all.
But on Wednesday Rishi Sunak announced that Post Office branch managers wrongly convicted are to be exonerated.
After a decades-long fight for justice, hundreds of those caught up in the scandal will have their good names restored by the end of the year under the government’s plans.
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