Publish restorative justice programme by 31 October 2025
By 31 October 2025, the Department, Fujitsu and the Post Office shall publish, either separately or together, a report outlining any agreed programme of restorative justice and/or any actions taken by that date to produce such a programme. For the avoidance of any doubt, the word Fujitsu in this recommendation is intended to include both Fujitsu Services Limited and Fujitsu Limited.
How was this assessed?
Response
Accepted
Response
AcceptedDepartment for Business and Trade accepts this recommendation. DBT, Post Office, and Fujitsu have jointly embarked on a postmaster-led restorative justice programme facilitated by the Restorative Justice Council. Sessions began on 23 September 2025. A detailed plan and progress update will be published on GOV.UK. For the avoidance of doubt, Fujitsu includes both Fujitsu Services Limited and Fujitsu Limited.
Progress Timeline
DBT, the Post Office and Fujitsu have jointly embarked on a restorative justice project for postmasters, facilitated by the Restorative Justice Council (RJC). All three parties are committed to the programme being postmaster-led. The pilot phase of the programme therefore involved meetings for postmasters facilitated by RJC to identify what postmasters want the programme to deliver. The conclusions of the pilot were published here: https://restorativejustice.org.uk/resources/horizon-project-reportrebuilding-trustthe-step-toward-restorative-future. They will inform the plan for future phases of the programme, which will be published in Spring 2026.
Verification: Government published formal response to Volume 1 recommendations on 13 October 2025, accepting 17 of 18 recommendations. Total compensation paid across all schemes: £1.38 billion as of December 2025. Volume 2 of Final Report expected 2026.
Published Evidence
Published assessments of implementation progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Check the source type badge to see whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.
HC 1598 found Fujitsu has acknowledged moral responsibility but made no interim payment and agreed no figure towards the approximately £2bn total redress bill. The committee recommended the government seek an urgent interim payment and that Fujitsu extend its moratorium on government contract bidding including subcontracting.
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.
Business and Trade Select Committee received an update on the restorative justice pilot launched in November 2025 under a joint statement by DBT, Fujitsu and Post Office. The committee noted the pilot as a positive step, while questioning its scope and reach.
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.