Rishi backs calls for probe into stripping ex-Post Office boss of CBE as more than one million sign petition
RISHI Sunak has backed calls for a probe into whether ex-Post Office boss Paula Vennells should be stripped of her CBE amid growing anger at the Horizon scandal.
Downing Street said the PM "shares the public's strength of feeling" and that he would "strongly support" the Honours Forfeiture Committee "if they were to choose to investigate".
It comes after a petition to remove the gong from the ex-Post Office boss reached one million signatures in the wake of the ITV new drama into the scandal: Mr Bates vs The Post Office.
It tells the story of the unjust accusation by the Post Office that former sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses were responsible for financial discrepancies caused by the computerised accounting system, Horizon.
Some sub-postmasters wrongfully went to prison, many were financially ruined and some have since died.
Ms Vennells served as the CEO of the Post Office while it routinely denied there were problems with its IT system.
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Labour frontbencher Steve Reed told TalkTV her honour was an “insult” to Horizon scandal victims and should be handed back.
It is not the first time Ms Vennells’ CBE has come into question, with Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake last month saying calls to strip her of the honour should be considered.
Justice Secretary Alex Chalk is meeting Mr Hollinrake today to discuss how to help the convicted branch managers clear their names.
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The Post Office minister is also due to deliver a statement in the Commons in the afternoon.
Speaking at a PM Connect event in Lancashire this morning, the Prime Minister said he wanted to speed up the compensation process for victims.
He said: "So people should know that we are on it and we want to make this right, that money has been set aside.
"What we are now looking at is how can we speed all of that up?"
Reports suggest since the dramatisation of the scandal was broadcast, 50 new potential victims have approached lawyers.
The Post Office is wholly owned by the Government and a public inquiry into Horizon is ongoing.
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According to the Sunday Times, the Justice Secretary is looking at whether the Post Office can be stripped of its role in the appeals process as victims continue to attempt to overturn wrongful convictions.
One option being considered by the Cabinet minister is whether the Crown Prosecution Service could take over the process, which the newspaper said could make it easier for convictions to be quashed.
Tory former Cabinet Minister David Davis told the BBC “justice delayed is justice denied” and that the exoneration process “can be accelerated” as well as the compensation.
He added: “We have got to get on with the convictions, the investigation, the accountability, establishing who is responsible for this.”