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Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry

Ongoing

Post Office Horizon Inquiry

Chair Sir Wyn Williams Judge / Judiciary
Established 01 Jun 2021
Commissioned by Department for Business and Trade Originally established under Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS)

Public inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal, examining how more than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted based on faulty Fujitsu software between 1999 and 2015.

5 years Duration (ongoing)
£74.7m Total Cost
114 Witnesses
96 Hearing Days
303 Statements
Inquiry Website Terms of Reference
Government Response
Accepted 19
Accepted in Part 6
Not Accepted 1
Under Review 1
Total Recommendations 27
Data last updated: 2 Mar 2026 · Source
Data verified: 26 May 2026 (import)
How to read this

Government Response tracks what the government said it would do (accepted, rejected, etc.).

Full methodology

2 debates 26 questions since Jan 2022
Written Question Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry
Dr Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat)
11 Nov 2025
Written Question Fujitsu: Contracts
John Milne (Liberal Democrat)
13 Oct 2025
Written Question Fujitsu: Contracts
John Milne (Liberal Democrat)
13 Oct 2025
Hansard Debate Post Office Horizon Inquiry: Volume 1
17 Jul 2025
Written Question Procurement: Standards
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour)
14 Jul 2025
View all 34 mentions →
All Activity (34)
Title Volume Publication Date Tracked recs Links
First Interim Report: Compensation - 17 Jul 2023 8
Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry: Final Report 1 08 Jul 2025 19
19 Feb 2020
Inquiry Established

Initially non-statutory inquiry established.

Source
01 Sep 2020
Chair Appointed

Sir Wyn Williams appointed as Chair.

01 Jun 2021
Converted to Statutory

Inquiry converted to statutory public inquiry with power to compel witnesses.

14 Feb 2022
Hearings Begin

Human impact hearings commenced.

15 May 2023
Phase 4 Hearings

Phase 4 examining Fujitsu's role began.

08 Jan 2024
Phase 6 Hearings

Phase 6 examining Post Office Ltd began.

13 May 2024
Phase 7 Hearings

Phase 7 examining Government, UKGI and Royal Mail Group.

30 Jun 2025
Final Report Expected

Chair Sir Wyn Williams expected to publish final report.

Source
Total Inquiry Cost (Cumulative) £74,726,556
to Mar 2025 Cumulative Total FY20-21 to FY24-25
Cost Breakdown (to Mar 2025)
Inquiry Legal Costs £24,455,048 Panel remuneration & Counsel to the Inquiry
Core Participant Legal Costs £15,904,255 Legal funding for core participants
Staff £4,915,306
Accommodation £8,851,979
Technology £4,092,512
Other £16,507,456
Total inquiry cost £74.73 million (to March 2025). Inquiry ongoing - report expected 2025. Category breakdown: inquiry_legal_costs = Chairman/Chair + Legal team + Counsel; staff_costs = Secretariat; accommodation_costs = Venue hire; technology_costs = Audio visual + Software/IT; other_costs = External document review lawyers + Expert witnesses + Other operational expenses.
Cost History
Period Total Inquiry Legal CP Legal Source
Mar 2025 £26,017,032 £8,738,949 £5,202,243
Mar 2025 (cum.) £74,726,556 £24,455,048 £15,904,255
Mar 2024 £26,770,510 £8,373,766 £6,150,587
Mar 2023 £18,491,383 £5,717,654 £3,905,857
Mar 2022 £3,087,287 £1,492,280 £645,569
Mar 2021 £360,345 £132,399 -
Clear

Recommendations (1)

POH-17
Under Consideration
Establish standing public body to administer future redress schemes
Recommendation
As soon as is reasonably practicable, HM Government shall establish a standing public body which shall, when called upon to do so, devise, administer and deliver schemes for providing financial redress to persons who have been wronged by public bodies. Read more
Published evidence summary
- The recommendation called for HM Government to establish a standing public body to devise, administer and deliver financial redress schemes.
- The Department for Business and Trade acknowledged this recommendation on 9 October 2025, stating it saw "clear advantages" but that options needed careful consideration, with a substantive statement expected by summer 2026 (Government response to the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry report (volume 1), DBT, 9 October 2025).
- The Business and Trade Select Committee noted the government had not committed to establishing a standing public body as recommended (Business and Trade Select Committee evidence session, January 2026).
- The Business and Trade Committee report HC 1598 found no progress on establishing the body, with the government having promised a substantive statement by summer 2026 (Business and Trade Committee, HC 1598, March 2026).
Department for Business and Trade (Primary)
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