Recommendation POH-7: Grant appropriate powers to HSS senior lawyer
From Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry: Volume 1 Report, published 8 July 2025.
Recommendation
The appointed person shall be given appropriate powers to ensure that these tasks can be performed and carried into effect. If it is considered necessary by the appointing authority, it should consult with the Advisory Board, Dentons, Sir Gary Hickinbottom, Sir Ross Cranston and an appropriate number of claimants' representatives (as well as its own advisors) before determining the appropriate powers.
In brief (written by this site)
The Inquiry recommended granting appropriate powers to the Horizon Shortfall Scheme senior lawyer. In a February 2026 update, the Cabinet Office reported that full details on the scope of the role had been published following consultation with Sir Ross Cranston, the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board, Dentons, claimants' legal representatives and the Post Office (Cabinet Office, Mar 2026). In March 2026, the Business and Trade Committee HC 1598 found that despite powers being granted to the senior lawyer, fully assessed scheme offers remained routinely undervalued, with major disparities between initial offers and eventual awards (Business and Trade Committee HC 1598, Mar 2026). The committee reported that thousands of claimants were still awaiting settlement and recommended transferring remaining cases to the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) (Business and Trade Committee HC 1598, Mar 2026).
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 5 Oct 2026. The record below is the sources' own words.
Government response
DBT agrees that the appropriate powers should be given to the appointed person. DBT will consult Sir Ross Cranston, the Advisory Board, Dentons, claimants’ legal representatives and the Post Office to ensure that the appointee has the relevant powers to undertake the role successfully.
Delivery
Cabinet Office says completed (2 March 2026)
Full details on the scope of the role of the Independent Senior Lawyer have been published on https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/horizon-shortfall-scheme-independent-senior-lawyer-scope-of-work/horizon-shortfall-scheme-independent-senior-lawyer-scope-of-work The document reflects consultation with Sir Ross Cranston, the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board, Dentons, claimants’ legal representatives and the Post Office.
From: Post Office (Horizon) Inquiry Recommendations Dashboard, February 2026 (data file)
Published evidence
Published findings referenced by inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether the finding is independent or government self-reported. Each finding is this site's summary of what the source found, with a link to the source; this site does not add its own progress rating.
Summary by this site of the published finding
HC 1598 found that despite powers being granted to the HSS senior lawyer, fully-assessed HSS offers remain routinely undervalued with major disparities between initial HSS offers and eventual HSSA awards. The committee concluded the HSS is "broken" for complex claims and recommended transferring remaining cases to DBT.
View detailed findings
Business and Trade Committee HC 1598 (13 March 2026) examined redress delivery one year on. Key findings: £1.44bn paid to 11,300+ claimants but thousands still waiting. HSS takes 143 days average for fixed-sum offers (target: 30 days) and 450 days for assessed claims (target: 180 days). Total redress bill now approximately £2bn. Fujitsu has contributed nothing. Committee made 29 formal conclusions and recommendations across redress schemes, quashed convictions, Fujitsu contribution, and pre-Horizon (Capture) IT system concerns.
Summary by this site of the published finding
Business and Trade Select Committee questioned what powers had been conferred on the HSS Senior Lawyer to ensure fair first offers. DBT stated it was consulting stakeholders on the appropriate powers.
View detailed findings
Business and Trade Committee held an evidence session on 6 January 2026 with witnesses from Fujitsu, the CCRC, DBT and MoJ. The CCRC revealed Horizon software may have been installed earlier than previously believed, potentially expanding the pool of eligible convictions. Over 4,000 claimants were still awaiting final settlement across all schemes at that date. Government accepted only 3 of 17 committee recommendations in full.
Source
Responsible bodies
Themes and tags
Who has spoken
- Department for Business and Trade
Response - Cabinet Office
Delivery statement