Latest news with #NewBranchIT
Pembrokeshire Herald
28-04-2025
- Business
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Pembrokeshire village shop redevelopment scheme refused
Roch postmaster among those still seeking compensation THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public money continuing to use the discredited Horizon IT system—despite accepting more than a decade ago that it needed replacing. New documents reveal that then Prime Minister Tony Blair and senior Labour ministers were warned as far back as 1999 about serious flaws in the original £548 million deal with Fujitsu. A Treasury memo at the time flagged that the Post Office would not own the core computer code, leaving them locked into the supplier and vulnerable to spiralling costs. Officials warned Fujitsu could use the situation to 'drive a costly settlement.' Since then, the total spent on Horizon contracts has reached £2.5 billion, including £600 million spent since 2012 when the Post Office first admitted it needed to move on from the system. Replacement efforts have repeatedly failed, with a £40 million IBM project abandoned in 2016 and another attempt scrapped in 2022. Former Roch postmaster: Tim Brentnall The latest replacement project—an internal system called New Branch IT (NBIT)—has run into delays and ballooning costs, with estimates now topping £1 billion. Despite past failings, the Post Office and Fujitsu are expected to remain in partnership until at least 2030. The scandal surrounding Horizon continues to grow, following the wrongful prosecution of over 900 sub-postmasters. Although private prosecutions based on Horizon data were halted in 2015, campaigners say the damage done is still being felt by victims across the UK—including here in Pembrokeshire. One of them is Tim Brentnall, who was just 22 when he and his parents bought the Roch Post Office. In 2010, he was prosecuted after a £22,500 shortfall appeared in the accounts—despite doing nothing wrong. Advised to plead guilty, he received an 18-month suspended sentence and 200 hours of community service. His conviction was quashed in 2021. Earlier this year, Brentnall told the BBC he was 'in disbelief' after being offered less than 17% of the compensation he had claimed. The offer came with a 50-page letter rejecting much of his legal and forensic case, and over 15,000 documents to sift through. He is now re-submitting the claim. 'There are people far older than me who should be enjoying their lives now,' he said. 'Instead, they're still fighting. People are dying without seeing justice. It's not right.' The Post Office says it is 'fundamentally changing' as an organisation and has paid out more than £768 million to over 5,100 people affected by the Horizon scandal. However, many victims and campaigners say the compensation process remains slow, unfair, and deeply distressing. Postal minister Gareth Thomas recently confirmed a further £276.9 million in government funding for the Post Office, including £136 million for future IT projects. He said the continued use of Horizon reflected 'past underinvestment' and that postmasters needed better tools going forward. A spokesperson for Tony Blair said the former PM took concerns over the Horizon contract seriously at the time and acted on independent advice. 'It is now clear the Horizon product was seriously flawed. Mr Blair has deep sympathy for those affected.' A separate 1999 memo was also sent to then-Chancellor Gordon Brown, but a spokesperson for Mr Brown said he would not have seen it and had no involvement in awarding the contract. Despite public statements about reform, doubts remain over whether NBIT will ever be delivered—and whether true justice will ever be achieved for those whose lives were torn apart by the Horizon scandal.
Pembrokeshire Herald
28-04-2025
- Business
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Lidl to invest half a billion pounds in expansion as it targets new sites in Wales
Roch postmaster among those still seeking compensation THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public money continuing to use the discredited Horizon IT system—despite accepting more than a decade ago that it needed replacing. New documents reveal that then Prime Minister Tony Blair and senior Labour ministers were warned as far back as 1999 about serious flaws in the original £548 million deal with Fujitsu. A Treasury memo at the time flagged that the Post Office would not own the core computer code, leaving them locked into the supplier and vulnerable to spiralling costs. Officials warned Fujitsu could use the situation to 'drive a costly settlement.' Since then, the total spent on Horizon contracts has reached £2.5 billion, including £600 million spent since 2012 when the Post Office first admitted it needed to move on from the system. Replacement efforts have repeatedly failed, with a £40 million IBM project abandoned in 2016 and another attempt scrapped in 2022. Former Roch postmaster: Tim Brentnall The latest replacement project—an internal system called New Branch IT (NBIT)—has run into delays and ballooning costs, with estimates now topping £1 billion. Despite past failings, the Post Office and Fujitsu are expected to remain in partnership until at least 2030. The scandal surrounding Horizon continues to grow, following the wrongful prosecution of over 900 sub-postmasters. Although private prosecutions based on Horizon data were halted in 2015, campaigners say the damage done is still being felt by victims across the UK—including here in Pembrokeshire. One of them is Tim Brentnall, who was just 22 when he and his parents bought the Roch Post Office. In 2010, he was prosecuted after a £22,500 shortfall appeared in the accounts—despite doing nothing wrong. Advised to plead guilty, he received an 18-month suspended sentence and 200 hours of community service. His conviction was quashed in 2021. Earlier this year, Brentnall told the BBC he was 'in disbelief' after being offered less than 17% of the compensation he had claimed. The offer came with a 50-page letter rejecting much of his legal and forensic case, and over 15,000 documents to sift through. He is now re-submitting the claim. 'There are people far older than me who should be enjoying their lives now,' he said. 'Instead, they're still fighting. People are dying without seeing justice. It's not right.' The Post Office says it is 'fundamentally changing' as an organisation and has paid out more than £768 million to over 5,100 people affected by the Horizon scandal. However, many victims and campaigners say the compensation process remains slow, unfair, and deeply distressing. Postal minister Gareth Thomas recently confirmed a further £276.9 million in government funding for the Post Office, including £136 million for future IT projects. He said the continued use of Horizon reflected 'past underinvestment' and that postmasters needed better tools going forward. A spokesperson for Tony Blair said the former PM took concerns over the Horizon contract seriously at the time and acted on independent advice. 'It is now clear the Horizon product was seriously flawed. Mr Blair has deep sympathy for those affected.' A separate 1999 memo was also sent to then-Chancellor Gordon Brown, but a spokesperson for Mr Brown said he would not have seen it and had no involvement in awarding the contract. Despite public statements about reform, doubts remain over whether NBIT will ever be delivered—and whether true justice will ever be achieved for those whose lives were torn apart by the Horizon scandal.
Pembrokeshire Herald
25-04-2025
- Business
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Wales leads UK with automatic voter registration pilot
Roch postmaster among those still seeking compensation THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public money continuing to use the discredited Horizon IT system—despite accepting more than a decade ago that it needed replacing. New documents reveal that then Prime Minister Tony Blair and senior Labour ministers were warned as far back as 1999 about serious flaws in the original £548 million deal with Fujitsu. A Treasury memo at the time flagged that the Post Office would not own the core computer code, leaving them locked into the supplier and vulnerable to spiralling costs. Officials warned Fujitsu could use the situation to 'drive a costly settlement.' Since then, the total spent on Horizon contracts has reached £2.5 billion, including £600 million spent since 2012 when the Post Office first admitted it needed to move on from the system. Replacement efforts have repeatedly failed, with a £40 million IBM project abandoned in 2016 and another attempt scrapped in 2022. Former Roch postmaster: Tim Brentnall The latest replacement project—an internal system called New Branch IT (NBIT)—has run into delays and ballooning costs, with estimates now topping £1 billion. Despite past failings, the Post Office and Fujitsu are expected to remain in partnership until at least 2030. The scandal surrounding Horizon continues to grow, following the wrongful prosecution of over 900 sub-postmasters. Although private prosecutions based on Horizon data were halted in 2015, campaigners say the damage done is still being felt by victims across the UK—including here in Pembrokeshire. One of them is Tim Brentnall, who was just 22 when he and his parents bought the Roch Post Office. In 2010, he was prosecuted after a £22,500 shortfall appeared in the accounts—despite doing nothing wrong. Advised to plead guilty, he received an 18-month suspended sentence and 200 hours of community service. His conviction was quashed in 2021. Earlier this year, Brentnall told the BBC he was 'in disbelief' after being offered less than 17% of the compensation he had claimed. The offer came with a 50-page letter rejecting much of his legal and forensic case, and over 15,000 documents to sift through. He is now re-submitting the claim. 'There are people far older than me who should be enjoying their lives now,' he said. 'Instead, they're still fighting. People are dying without seeing justice. It's not right.' The Post Office says it is 'fundamentally changing' as an organisation and has paid out more than £768 million to over 5,100 people affected by the Horizon scandal. However, many victims and campaigners say the compensation process remains slow, unfair, and deeply distressing. Postal minister Gareth Thomas recently confirmed a further £276.9 million in government funding for the Post Office, including £136 million for future IT projects. He said the continued use of Horizon reflected 'past underinvestment' and that postmasters needed better tools going forward. A spokesperson for Tony Blair said the former PM took concerns over the Horizon contract seriously at the time and acted on independent advice. 'It is now clear the Horizon product was seriously flawed. Mr Blair has deep sympathy for those affected.' A separate 1999 memo was also sent to then-Chancellor Gordon Brown, but a spokesperson for Mr Brown said he would not have seen it and had no involvement in awarding the contract. Despite public statements about reform, doubts remain over whether NBIT will ever be delivered—and whether true justice will ever be achieved for those whose lives were torn apart by the Horizon scandal.
Pembrokeshire Herald
25-04-2025
- Business
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Post Office spent £600m to keep using flawed Horizon system
Roch postmaster among those still seeking compensation THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public money continuing to use the discredited Horizon IT system—despite accepting more than a decade ago that it needed replacing. New documents reveal that then Prime Minister Tony Blair and senior Labour ministers were warned as far back as 1999 about serious flaws in the original £548 million deal with Fujitsu. A Treasury memo at the time flagged that the Post Office would not own the core computer code, leaving them locked into the supplier and vulnerable to spiralling costs. Officials warned Fujitsu could use the situation to 'drive a costly settlement.' Since then, the total spent on Horizon contracts has reached £2.5 billion, including £600 million spent since 2012 when the Post Office first admitted it needed to move on from the system. Replacement efforts have repeatedly failed, with a £40 million IBM project abandoned in 2016 and another attempt scrapped in 2022. Former Roch postmaster: Tim Brentnall The latest replacement project—an internal system called New Branch IT (NBIT)—has run into delays and ballooning costs, with estimates now topping £1 billion. Despite past failings, the Post Office and Fujitsu are expected to remain in partnership until at least 2030. The scandal surrounding Horizon continues to grow, following the wrongful prosecution of over 900 sub-postmasters. Although private prosecutions based on Horizon data were halted in 2015, campaigners say the damage done is still being felt by victims across the UK—including here in Pembrokeshire. One of them is Tim Brentnall, who was just 22 when he and his parents bought the Roch Post Office. In 2010, he was prosecuted after a £22,500 shortfall appeared in the accounts—despite doing nothing wrong. Advised to plead guilty, he received an 18-month suspended sentence and 200 hours of community service. His conviction was quashed in 2021. Earlier this year, Brentnall told the BBC he was 'in disbelief' after being offered less than 17% of the compensation he had claimed. The offer came with a 50-page letter rejecting much of his legal and forensic case, and over 15,000 documents to sift through. He is now re-submitting the claim. 'There are people far older than me who should be enjoying their lives now,' he said. 'Instead, they're still fighting. People are dying without seeing justice. It's not right.' The Post Office says it is 'fundamentally changing' as an organisation and has paid out more than £768 million to over 5,100 people affected by the Horizon scandal. However, many victims and campaigners say the compensation process remains slow, unfair, and deeply distressing. Postal minister Gareth Thomas recently confirmed a further £276.9 million in government funding for the Post Office, including £136 million for future IT projects. He said the continued use of Horizon reflected 'past underinvestment' and that postmasters needed better tools going forward. A spokesperson for Tony Blair said the former PM took concerns over the Horizon contract seriously at the time and acted on independent advice. 'It is now clear the Horizon product was seriously flawed. Mr Blair has deep sympathy for those affected.' A separate 1999 memo was also sent to then-Chancellor Gordon Brown, but a spokesperson for Mr Brown said he would not have seen it and had no involvement in awarding the contract. Despite public statements about reform, doubts remain over whether NBIT will ever be delivered—and whether true justice will ever be achieved for those whose lives were torn apart by the Horizon scandal.
The Guardian
25-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Post Office paid £600m to continue using bug-ridden Horizon IT system
The Post Office has paid more than £600m of public money to continue using the bug-ridden Horizon IT system despite deciding it needed to be replaced more than a decade ago. It has emerged that the government was warned about potential problems with the original £548m deal the Post Office struck with the Japanese company Fujitsu before it was signed in 1999. The former prime minister Tony Blair and other senior Labour government figures were aware that, under the terms of the deal, the Post Office would not own the core computer code to Horizon, which would make it difficult to ever shift supplier, according to the BBC. To date, the Post Office has spent £2.5bn on contracts with Fujitsu, including £600m on extensions since it started looking for new suppliers in 2012, and ultimately attempting to build its own technology, called the New Branch IT system. The Post Office stopped private prosecutions based on Horizon IT data in 2015, after more than 900 operators were wrongly prosecuted over shortfalls resulting from the faulty system, a practice it has promised not to restart. The Post Office started the hunt for a new supplier in 2012 and asked IBM to build a replacement system to Horizon in 2015, but that project was abandoned at a cost of £40m in 2016. A later plan to build a new system running on Amazon's cloud computing system had to be abandoned in 2022. The embattled business has been developing its own proprietary system, NBIT, which was meant to roll out this year. However, it has been beset with delays and increasing costs that could run to more than £1bn, raising doubts it will ever be rolled out, with the Post Office and Fujitsu admitting they are likely to still be working together until 2030. According to the BBC, Blair received an update from the Treasury in May 1999 warning that discussions with a Fujitsu subsidiary, ICL Pathway, over the terms of a deal for Horizon had 'foundered'. One of the issues related to the implications of not controlling all intellectual property rights, with the Treasury warning that Fujitsu 'would be in a strong position to drive a costly settlement with the Post Office'. A spokesperson for Blair did not directly address his knowledge of the intellectual property ownership problem but told the BBC he 'took very seriously the issues raised about the Horizon contract' at the time. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion 'The final decision was taken after an investigation by an independent panel recommended it was viable,' the spokesperson said. 'It is now clear that the Horizon product was seriously flawed, leading to tragic and completely unacceptable consequences, and Mr Blair has deep sympathy with all those affected.' In the same year a document was sent to Gordon Brown, the then chancellor, warning of the issues over code ownership. A spokesperson for Brown said he 'would not have been shown the memo' from 20 May 1999 and he would have been copied in as a 'formality'. The spokesperson told the BBC: 'He was not involved in any work related to the purchasing, award or management of the Horizon contract.'
