General Chat

It is heartening to see that the convictions have been quashed of the sub-postmasters who were accused of fraud and false accounting this century.

However, I think this might not be the end of it. I believe these accusations of false accounting may go back considerably further than this.

On my way home in the early hours of a weekday morning in the summer of 1983, I passed our local post-office and noticed the light was on in the garage. I can't remember if I heard an engine running, I just didn't notice because I was sometimes working on my own car on the side of the road at strange times and probably would have carried on into the night i I had had a garage.

I had just passed our local sub-postmaster killing himself because he was facing prosecution for a fraud he almost certainly had not committed.

He was fifty-three and lived with his dad. He didn't smoke or drink and they two would go out together a couple of times a year to the local club big events. His dad said he had no idea where he might have spent it.

This was long before social media and I wonder how many others might have suffered alone in the same way and would this enormous miscarriage of justice ever have come to light without social media?

RIP John Dyson

The solicitor involved in this thought there was about another 600 post masters/mistresses out there who he hoped would now comeforward. How mnay of them are still here to be able to put their names forward.

The whole thing has been so tragic. The Post Office behaved appallingly.

'Justice delayed is justice denied'. William E. Gladstone.

A perfect quote for this situation.

Sharron, That is so very sad.
So many people at the very heart of their communities faced accusations and loss of reputation, while protesting their innocence.

I believe our local sub Post Office in a corner shop was affected by those.
That part closed and then without that service, trade dwindled and the shop eventually closed and was demolished for housing.

I hope other staff now come forward.

From memory I am sure that there were cases in the 80s. I have a penfriend who with her husband ran a sub post office and I am sure I remember her mentioning it. I don't think she was involved but I remember talk of them being convinced it was the new computer programme at fault.

That is interesting,Ann.

I am sure that they would still be doing the very same thing had social media not come along.

It was much more difficult to communicate with others at that time.

And, to boot, reading from that, some bright spark in the C of E has made her a member of the Ethical Investment Advisory Group! :-0

Could you cite the case please Rollo?

Out of court settlements Sharron are nearly always tied to NDO aka gagging order.

That's handy.

Was this the NHS one, that Fujitsu allegedly won?

This is an interesting piece about Simon Blagden (CBE), of Fijutsu:

"OpenDemocracy has also identified at least 38 meetings and round tables between Japanese tech giant Fujitsu and ministers and senior officials since June 2016. Simon Blagden, until earlier this year Fujitsu’s UK chief executive, has given more than £200,000 to the Conservatives.

In June, Theresa May sparked controversy when it was reported that she was proposing to make Blagden the government's next trade and investment minister. In the end, he did not take up the role.

Fujitsu, which had lobbied the British government to adopt its proposals for the Irish border after Brexit, donated almost £15,000 to the Conservatives earlier this year."

Blagden was also put forward as a candidate to the House of Lords.

No wonder the Governmet tried to brush the Post Office scandal under the carpet.

Really?

It's all coming out and long may it continue to do so.

I don't hold out much hope for the Irish border problem, either!

Can't really tie in with "Duchy and Steels".

Might have to look a bit deeper into non-disclosure, then I can be a hexpert too because I can't quite see how an expert witness can be tied into a non-disclosure clause, but what do I know?

Interesting!
Is that this one, Sharron, from 2020?

https://www.stiveschambers.co.uk/content/uploads/2020/05/Duchy-v-Steels_Article_14-May-2020-1.pdf

Am I right in thinking the result was, if it's not specified what consequences should flow from any breach of that confidentiality, then an innocent party cannot be sure there will be any consequence if the other side breaches the agreement.

So, until this case, many non-disclosure clauses were poppycock?

I don't think so, but non disclosure is part of a contract between two parties and would be covered by privity of contract.

Implying that an expert witness should be covered by a Non Disclosure Clause, now that is poppycock.

Oh, I see.

Ex-Post Office boss Paula Vennells quits Morrisons and Dunelm boards

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/apr/26/post-office-paula-vennells-quits-morrisons-dunelm-boards