Rishi Sunak is facing calls to suspend new public contracts with Fujitsu after it emerged the IT giant made billions in government deals despite knowing its involvement in the Horizon scandal.
Post Office Minister Kevin Hollinrake said the government believes it has a “solution” to overturn the wrongful convictions of Post Office staff, promising an announcement “imminent”.
It comes as attention focuses on the company at the center of the scandal, after Fujitsu's faulty Horizon accounting software helped lead to the conviction of more than 700 postal branch managers.
Former Conservative cabinet minister Nadhim Zahawi said Fujitsu should no longer receive “VIP” treatment for contracts, amid growing questions about why the government has not cut ties with the company.
And senior Labor and Liberal Democrat MPs have called for a “moratorium” on all new contracts with Fujitsu until the company is held accountable for its role in the scandal.
Since 2012, the public sector as a whole has awarded the company almost 200 contracts worth a combined total of £6.8bn, according to analysts Tussell.
And Fujitsu has won £4.9bn in public sector settlements since a 2019 court ruling that found its Horizon system was seriously flawed, according to the Financial times.
ITV drama returns focus to Post Office scandal
(ITV)
Around 43 contracts, worth a total of £3.6bn, are still in operation, including the contract for the Post Office Horizon system and the government's flood warning system.
Fujitsu received contracts through priority “VIP” routes, so-called “framework agreements”, which help the government sign agreements with preferred suppliers, the Yo reported.
Zahawi said the company should be suspended from any priority lanes. “Fujitsu has not been adequately held accountable for this major scandal. They have to take their share of responsibility for this debacle,” he told the newspaper.
Labor MP Liam Byrne, chairman of the business select committee, said ministers “must no longer reward failure”. He added: “It is vital that there is now a moratorium on new contracts for Fujitsu until we get to the bottom of this terrible miscarriage of justice.”
Fujitsu bosses have been summoned to answer questions from the business committee next week, but have not yet said whether they will attend. Byrne said it was “vital that Fujitsu confess how they got it so wrong”.
Labor MP Kevan Jones, a leading campaigner on the issue, said Fujitsu should not be allowed to win new contracts until it properly explained “its role and responsibilities” in the scandal.
Sarah Olney, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokeswoman, said suspending contracts until the end of the public inquiry was “the least” the government could do.
Sunak is under pressure to help overturn Post Office convictions
(PA/PA file)
It would be very difficult for the government to end its relationship with Fujistu. The company provides IT services to multiple government departments including the Home Office, Foreign Office, Defra and the Ministry of Defence.
These services include the provision of the National Police Computer, which stores people's criminal records, and the government's flood warning system, as well as the national emergency alert system launched in March 2023.
Fujitsu does important work with HMRC, with contracts worth more than £1 billion, including a deal awarded in February 2022.
No. 10 said on Tuesday that Fujitsu would be “liable,” legally or financially, if the public inquiry finds the company made a mistake in the Horizon scandal.
But the prime minister's spokesman did not say the government would stop awarding contracts to the company if it was found to be at fault, saying only that the companies' conduct “generally” would be considered part of the procurement process.
Asked whether Fujitsu should be prosecuted, Post Office Minister Hollinrake said it was important to establish “exactly who is responsible, individuals or organisations” in the public inquiry before any action could be taken, including possible prosecutions or “financial sanctions”.
Hollinrake told Sky News on Wednesday that “we are very, very close” to an announcement on overturning Horizon's convictions, saying the government had reached a solution.
It comes after Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said on Tuesday that he was “actively considering” introducing legislation aimed at overturning at least 700 mass convictions.
Justice Secretary Alex Chalk has been in talks to overturn the convictions.
(PA Wire)
Hollinkrake insisted the government had been considering that approach before the ITV drama put the issue back in the spotlight. Asked if there is evidence of this, Hollinrake said: “It's not something we would make public,” she told BBC Radio 4.
Horizon's independent Compensation Advisory Board will also meet at a later date. The advisory board, whose members include veteran campaigners Kevan Jones and fellow Conservative Lord Arbuthnot, has called for the Post Office convictions to be “overturned”.
Hollinrake could join the lunchtime meeting, with attendees likely awaiting an update on any plans to overturn convictions and efforts to speed up compensation payments.
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) would normally review individual convictions and potentially send them to the Court of Appeal. But the unprecedented scale of the Horizon scandal could require the extraordinary measure of omnibus legislation.
A Fujitsu spokesperson said: “Post Office Horizon IT's current legal investigation is examining complex events dating back more than 20 years to understand who knew what, when and what they did with that knowledge.
“The investigation has reinforced the devastating impact on the lives of postmasters and their families, and Fujitsu has apologized for its role in their suffering.”
They added: “Fujitsu is fully committed to supporting the investigation to understand what happened and learn from it. “Out of respect for the investigation process, it would be inappropriate for Fujitsu to comment further at this time.”
