Paula Vennells to lastly be grilled by victims’ laywer on ultimate day – dwell
Paula Vennells will today come face to face with victims of the Horizon IT scandal in her final day of brutal questioning.
Lawyers representing subpostmasters will get the chance to grill ex-CEO as part of the lengthy inquiry.
The 65-year-old has given evidence over the last two days, where she continued to grow emotional over questions. In today’s session, she is expected to be addressed by court participants.
Among those are believed to be subpostmasters who were wrongly jailed as a result of the Horizon IT problems. Yesterday there were audible groans from the gallery when Vennells said she couldn’t “remember” if she took advice from a PR professional not to review 5-10 years’ worth of past prosecutions, prompting a warning from inquiry chairman Wyn Williams.
Yesterday the former Post Office boss admitted ten years of miscarriages could have been avoided if a review had been carried out into all false accounting prosecutions. She broke down in tears on Wednesday as she was grilled at the inquiry. The former chief executive issued an apology to furious postmasters including Alan Bates, saying: “I am very, very sorry.
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Paula Vennells urged to ‘come clean’ by victims of Post Office scandal
Disgraced Post Office boss Paula Vennells is being urged by subpostmasters and mistresses whose lives were shattered by the Horizon scandal to “come clean” about her role in what went on.
Mum-of-two Seema Misra, 48, was eight months pregnant in 2010 when she was jailed for 15 months for false accounting and theft. She gave birth wearing a tag.
She said of Vennells’ tears: “I wish I could cry. I don’t have any more tears left. I’ve been to prison without evidence. Yet Vennells and the others have so much evidence and so many facts against them. I don’t know what the police are waiting for.
“I know Paula and the other bosses are all hiding behind the inquiry. That is wrong. They won’t be able to do that forever.”
Paula Vennells urged to ‘come clean’ by victims of Post Office scandal
Day three of Paula Vennells’ testimony set to begin
We are expecting the third day of Paula Vennells being asked questions at the Horizon IT inquiry to start at around 10am.
Yesterday started a little earlier, however.
What happened on day two of Paula Vennells’ testimony
Groans, jeers and laughter erupted at the public inquiry into the Post Office IT scandal on Thurdsay as Paula Vennells gave her second day of evidence.
The disgraced chief executive denied failing to review suspect prosecutions of sub-postmasters because it would be bad for PR and end up in the papers. The public gallery at the Horizon Inquiry, which included many wrongly accused victims, scoffed “Oh, come on!” as Ms Vennells said she hadn’t put brand image ahead of miscarriages of justice.
Around 900 sub-postmasters were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015. They took the blame for a faulty computer system which made it look like money was missing from their branches. Some were jailed and many suffered financial ruin. Some have since died.
Paula Vennells met with groans, jeers and laughter at Post Office scandal inquiry
Paula Vennells arrives for day three of Horizon IT testimony
Ex-Post Office CEO Paula Vennells has arrived for her third day of giving testimony at the Horizon IT inquiry in London flanked by police officers.
The 65-year-old has already sat through two days of grilling by barrister Jason Beer KC. Today, people in the gallery are expected to be able to ask her questions.
