Ousted Post Office chairman ‘did nothing to change the culture' amid Horizon scandal fallout, postmaster tells LBC

28 January 2024, 08:10 | Updated: 28 January 2024, 09:10

The Post Office board has done nothing ‘to hold the executive to account’, a postmaster has said following the news the chairman has been ousted.

Post Office chairman Henry Staunton has stepped down as chairman from the company, it was announced on Saturday evening.

Mr Staunton was let go from the role following a phone call with Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch after reported rows between the Government and the Post Office in the wake of renewed focus on the Horizon scandal.

Speaking to LBC’s Matthew Wright at Breakfast on Sunday, Jerry Brown, a postmaster at Hadleigh in Suffolk, called for a culture change within the Post Office.

Mr Brown said while Mr Staunton was not in the role at the time of the Horizon scandal, in the time since his appointment he has failed to change the culture within the Post Office.

He said: “Yes, he wasn’t there when the Horizon scandal started but he is there now when the Horizon scandal is continuing.

“Him, the board and the non-executive directors have done nothing to change the culture within the Post Office executive.

“The job of the board, especially the non-executive directors, is to hold the executive to account, to investigate, to inquire. They haven’t, in my opinion.”

Postmaster: 'There has been no effort to change the culture within the post office

Badenoch will replace Mr Staunton after tensions between the Post Office and the Government in recent weeks following a public outcry about the Horizon scandal which saw 700 sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses wrongly prosecuted due to a faulty IT system.

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One insider has claimed there were several sources of tension between the institutions in the wake of renewed scrutiny regarding the Post Office Horizon scandal.

Rows had broken out between the Post Office and Government in recent weeks - one of which focused on the appointment of a senior director role which was due to become vacant.

Other tensions emerged over mistaken bonuses paid to Post Office chief executives and co-operation or lack thereof with the Horizon inquiry.

They agreed to "part ways with mutual consent" and an interim will be appointed "shortly", the Department for Business and Trade said.

Mr Staunton only took up the post at the state-owned company in December 2022, following nine years as chairman of WH Smith.

He had been tasked with leading the board of directors as the business reels from the fallout of what has been described as the UK's biggest miscarriage of justice.

More than 700 subpostmasters and subpostmistresses were prosecuted by the Post Office after faulty accounting software Horizon made it look as though money was missing from their shops.

The saga prompted an outcry across the country after it was dramatised in the ITV series Mr Bates Vs The Post Office earlier this month.

Hundreds of subpostmasters are awaiting compensation despite the Government announcing that those who have had convictions quashed are eligible for £600,000 payouts.

A Government spokesperson said: "In a phone call earlier today, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade and Henry Staunton, chair of Post Office Limited (POL), agreed to part ways with mutual consent.

A Government spokesperson said: "In a phone call earlier today, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade and Henry Staunton, chair of Post Office Limited (POL), agreed to part ways with mutual consent.

"An interim will be appointed shortly and a recruitment process for a new chair will be launched in due course, in accordance with the Governance Code for Public Appointments."

The Business Secretary said: "The Post Office is rightfully under a heightened level of scrutiny at this time. With that in mind, I felt there was a need for new leadership, and we have parted ways with mutual consent."