An investigation into the accounting software the Post Office used before its controversial Horizon system has begun contacting subpostmasters and is expected to report its findings in the autumn, it has been announced.
Risk consultancy and financial solutions firm Kroll has been appointed to conduct an independent forensic investigation into the system called Capture which was used in the 1990s, before Horizon was implemented in post offices.
Several former deputy postmasters and postmasters have expressed concern that there were similar flaws in the Capture system to those in the Horizon software, which led to the wrongful conviction of hundreds of people working in branches.
The news was welcomed by former subpostmaster and Capture user Steve Marston, who believes he was wrongly convicted of theft and false accounting.
“I definitely feel very optimistic about it,” Marston told Sky News.
Horizon data was used to sue over 700 sub-postmasters which was why many more were forced to pay alleged shortfalls in branches across the UK, facing significant difficulties in the process.
An independent public inquiry into the implementation and failings of Horizonte at Correios is underway.
What is happening now
On Tuesday, the subpostmasters who say they were wrong convicted of capture errors were sent in writing with the news that Kroll had been appointed by the Department of Business and Commerce to conduct the forensic investigation.
The work will “evaluate whether the design, implementation and use of the Post Office Capture system could have resulted in any harm to postmasters,” Kroll said.
It will also examine whether the Postal Service adequately investigated problems associated with the system.
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Former sub-postmaster Steve Marston
The fact that the Post Office had no involvement was also welcomed by Marston.
“They have no connection with the Post Office, in the sense that they cannot influence what is said, which is very important in what will happen,” he said.
The investigation was first announced in April after Post Office Minister Kevin Hollinrake met with a former deputy postmaster and a lawyer representing 35 people who believe they have been wrongly accused of theft.
They agreed that an independent IT expert would evaluate the evidence that claimed to “prove” that the Capture software was prone to failure.
Kroll also said it is collecting information about Capture from postmasters that may be relevant to the investigation.
‘Long time’
While Kroll didn’t provide a more precise timeline beyond “fall,” Marston said he was more than happy to wait.
“It’s been a long time,” he said. “I mean, it goes back to the 1990s.
“We only started this process in mid-January…we’ve come a long, long way.”
The process shouldn’t take as long as the Horizon survey — which was created in September 2020 — because Capture was a small, simplistic program, Marston said.
It was a self-contained system and did not involve the complex networking inherent to Horizon.
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What’s next
Marston said he is confident the report will contain evidence that will allow Capture’s convictions to be re-evaluated.
He worries, however, about the post-election government and its commitment to resolving capture issues.
“We are aware of the fact that elections are imminent. And obviously it is a concern…if there is a change of government, will the new government deliver on what was promised to us?”
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