Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Lawyer advised Post Office to 'avoid apologising', inquiry hears

External counsel recommended in 2013 that the Post Office should correct accounting errors in its Horizon system without admitting culpability

Lawyer advised Post Office to 'avoid apologising', inquiry hears

A LAWYER who advised the Post Office for more than seven years had suggested that issuing apologies to operators would be similar to acknowledging some level of fault, a public inquiry has heard.

Andrew Parsons, a partner at the law firm Womble Bond Dickinson, in 2013 reviewed drafts of letters intended for several branch operators who had identified financial discrepancies in their accounts, as displayed by the Horizon IT system, discrepancies which the Post Office had agreed to rectify, the Guardian reported.


In an email sent to Post Office executives in June 2013, Parsons wrote: "I don't think we should apologise in the letters. I know this sounds harsh but in apologising we are admitting some degree of culpability. I think we should maintain a more cold, procedural approach to correcting what is effectively an accounting irregularity."

On Thursday (13), Julian Blake, counsel to the inquiry, asked Parsons about the legal implications of making an apology.

"Sometimes apologies can be interpreted as admissions. I think it's pretty common for lawyers to consider whether an apology is appropriate. In my view, it leads people to believe there was an admission of legal fault when in fact the Post Office's stance was that while there was a problem, it had been corrected," he was quoted as saying.

Parsons was also questioned about an email from 2016 in which his law firm advised the Post Office to "try and suppress" disclosure of a key document "for as long as possible."

At that time, lawyers representing branch operators, led by Alan Bates, were demanding the Post Office disclose its investigation guidelines in the early stages of their high court battle, which was later dramatised by ITV.

The email, sent in October 2016 by a junior lawyer at Womble Bond Dickinson, had been reviewed by Parsons. He added a paragraph mentioning "ultimately withholding a key document."

His addition read, "For now we'll do what we can to avoid disclosure of these guidelines and try to do so in a way that looks legitimate. However, we are ultimately withholding a key document and this may attract some criticism... we'll adopt this approach until such time as we sense the criticism is becoming serious."

Parsons admitted to the inquiry that it was a "very poorly worded email and I regret sending it."

He explained that the junior solicitor had sent him a draft that did not include this final paragraph, and he added it to clarify the actions required from Post Office on this matter.

He justified the approach by citing "substantive legitimate reasons for resisting disclosure of the investigation guidelines at this early stage."

Parsons was further questioned about communications between himself and Rodric Williams, an internal Post Office lawyer, regarding potential responses to a 2015 BBC Panorama episode that raised concerns about the Horizon IT system.

The programme highlighted the cases of convicted post office operators Noel Thomas, Seema Misra and Jo Hamilton, who were all acquitted in 2021.

At that time, Parsons had written that his preferred strategy was for the Post Office to do nothing and wait for the Criminal Cases Review Commission's decision on potential miscarriages of justice. Alternatively, the Post Office could go on "full attack."

In an email read to the inquiry, Parsons suggested the Post Office could "start attacking the postmasters’ credibility by calling out Thomas, Misra, and Hamilton as the liars and criminals that they are."

"On reflection, that language is too strong," he said during the inquiry.

Separately, on Thursday, a Scottish law that will automatically exonerate Scots wrongly convicted as part of the Post Office Horizon scandal received royal assent and will come into effect on Friday (14).

The inquiry is investigating how the Post Office pursued and prosecuted hundreds of individuals for alleged financial discrepancies in their branch accounts over more than a decade. It has since been revealed that these issues were due to bugs in the Horizon IT system, managed by the state-owned entity.

More For You

King Charles praises yoga as thousands join global celebrations

Yoga Day celebrations in the UK (Photo: X/@HCI_London)

King Charles praises yoga as thousands join global celebrations

HUNDREDS of people gathered in central London on Friday (20) evening to mark the 10th International Day of Yoga, with King Charles III sending a special message of support for the ancient practice that continues to grow in popularity across Britain.

The celebration took place at an iconic square on the Strand, organised by the Indian High Commission in partnership with King's College London. High commissioner Vikram Doraiswami opened the proceedings by reading out the King's personal message from Buckingham Palace.

Keep ReadingShow less
Parliament backs assisted dying in historic law shift

Supporters of the assisted dying law for terminally ill people hold a banner, on the day British lawmakers are preparing to vote on the bill, in London, Britain, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes

Parliament backs assisted dying in historic law shift

PARLIAMENT voted on Friday (20) in favour of a bill to legalise assisted dying, paving the way for the country's biggest social change in a generation.

314 lawmakers voted in favour with 291 against the bill, clearing its biggest parliamentary hurdle.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India

An Air India Airbus A320-200 aircraft takes off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad, India, July 7, 2017. Picture taken July 7, 2017.

Regulator warns Air India over delayed emergency equipment checks: Report

INDIA’s aviation regulator has warned Air India for violating safety rules after three of its Airbus aircraft operated flights without undergoing mandatory checks on emergency escape slides, according to official documents reviewed by Reuters.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued warning notices and a detailed investigation report highlighting the breach. These documents were sent days before the recent crash of an Air India Boeing 787-8, in which all but one of the 242 people onboard were killed. The Airbus incidents are unrelated to that crash.

Keep ReadingShow less
assisted dying bill

Pro and anti-assisted dying campaigners protest ahead of a parliamentary decision later today, on June 20, 2025 in London.

Getty Images

MPs to vote on assisted dying bill amid divided views

UK MPs are set to hold a key vote on assisted dying on Friday, which could either advance or halt a proposed law that would allow terminally ill adults to end their lives under strict conditions.

The vote follows several hours of debate in the House of Commons and will decide whether the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill moves to the House of Lords for further scrutiny or is dropped altogether.

Keep ReadingShow less
Zhenhao Zou

Zhenhao Zou, 28, was jailed on Thursday after being found guilty of multiple offences. (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters

Chinese student jailed for life for raping women in UK and China

A CHINESE postgraduate student convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in the UK and China has been sentenced to life imprisonment by a London court.

Zhenhao Zou, 28, was jailed on Thursday after being found guilty of multiple offences. Police say there is evidence he may have targeted more than 50 other women.

Keep ReadingShow less