An independent public inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal was established in September 2020. Following a request from the Chair of the Inquiry, Sir Wyn Williams, it became a statutory inquiry in June 2021.
The Inquiry is entirely independent. Its Chair, Sir Wyn Williams, is supported by a team, including counsel, solicitors, assessors and a secretariat.
Post Office is a Core Participant in the Inquiry. Other Core Participants include Horizon’s supplier Fujitsu, Post Office’s Shareholder UKGI, the Department for Business and Trade, the National Federation of Subpostmasters (NFSP), the Communications Workers Union (CWU) and Postmasters. A full list of current Core Participants can be found on the Inquiry website here. The Inquiry’s Terms of Reference can be found here and the list of issues it is examining is here.
The Chair of the Statutory Inquiry has a wide range of powers, including to compel the production of documents and to summon witnesses to give evidence on oath. Post Office is disclosing tens of thousands of documents to the Inquiry from a period of more than two decades.
For more information about how the Inquiry finds and calls witnesses please see their video here.
Confidentiality and Legal Privilege
Post Office shares fully the aims of the Inquiry and is committed to transparently assisting its work. In November 2021, we agreed to waive relevant legal privilege for the purpose of the Inquiry to over 20 years of documentation, reflecting our desire to assist the Inquiry in obtaining the information necessary to complete its investigations.
We will also not seek to enforce the terms of Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) we may have with current or former employees, Postmasters or Directors in relation to the Inquiry’s terms of reference, subject to certain conditions. The Inquiry’s statement on this can be found here.