Post Office Inquiry: Chairman intervenes as public gallery scoffs

The former Post Office boss Paula Vennells has denied trying to influence the independent investigation into the Horizon IT scandal – as emails emerged revealing that she saw managing the media as an urgent priority. The inquiry chairman had to intervene during groans of derision from the public gallery.

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Paula venel day two I don’t recall I don’t remember I don’t think I understood I don’t think I knew that I have no recollection of that at all over and over and over again Ian Henderson was one of the second site forensic accountants who uncovered the post office computer disaster and thus the post office coverup and got sacked for doing so by the post office this program first revealed covert recordings between Ian Henderson and Paula venel management team showing venel wasn’t focused on miscarriages of justice pa agrees that the original scope of the investigation did not go as far as looking at um whether it was the um miscarriage of Justice point today the inquiry was read an extract from the covert recording Paula venel indeed not looking for miscarriages of Justice that’s not what she’s looking for but the inquiry was shown the second site terms of reference all about investigating miscarriages of Justice Jason beer said if the accountants had been able to do their job a decade of miscarriage of Justice may not have happened Paul lenel agreed emails showed the post office wanted to force second site to use just two or three sub postmaster cases to prove its computer system wasn’t at fault why was The Proposal to limit the report to determining whether systemic defects in Horizon had resulted in wrongful convictions on the basis of two or three cases I don’t know I wasn’t involved in the conversation how could two or three p cases possibly answer the question have systemic defects in Horizon generally resulted in the wrongful conviction they couldn’t they they they could not possibly do that email after email today Unearthed a key part of the post office cover up there was a terror of media coverage on radio newspapers and television even when forced to make a statement therefore the post office would only give one tiny part of the full truth of the unfolding disaster post office press officer Mark Davis told Paul Avenel you can’t go back years investigating all these postmasters and here’s why and this says you can’t do that you’ll be on the front page that’s a grossly improper perspective isn’t it yes it is yes it is then a bombshell Paula venel warmly welcomed Mark Davis’s grossly improper perspective she wrote back to Davis your right to call this out I will take your steer you did take the advice of the pr guy didn’t you I really don’t remember it relating to the decision hang on now please groans of derision from the sub postmasters at the hearing I understand how this reads but I don’t recall making any conscious decision not to go back and put in place a review of all past criminal cases looking on across the country this week the victims understand how she’s lost away and quite honestly I find this utterly contemptible the way she sits there acting like the wounded soldier when in actual fact she was the commander-in-chief I absolutely loved my post office sorry I loved my post office branch so much we know the difference between right and wrong these people don’t post office limited don’t know the difference between right and wrong simply Satan be gone as she left public anger at the woman who was an Anglican priest and shortlisted for Bishop of London even after the post office disaster rot in hell you disgust us tomorrow the last of three days of her evidence