'I'm on my way to get an OBE but the Post Office scandal fight isn't over'

A Post Office scandal victim has said the “fight isn't over” amid calls to take the government to court over its compensation scheme.

Christopher Head, who will on Wednesday receive an OBE for his campaigning, said the celebration was likely to be “overshadowed” by the fact justice hasn’t been served. He backed a call from leading campaign hero Sir Alan Bates to take the government to court over the dismal compensation scheme.

Ministers are coming under increasing pressure amid more than 4,000 victims still waiting for a settlement. It emerged on Tuesday that Sir Alan, who featured in the ITV hit-drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, has told former subpostmasters that it could take until 2027 before all the claims are finished - based on current progress. He said taking legal action was "probably the quickest way to ensure fairness for all".

Speaking to the Mirror on his way to Windsor Castle for his OBE award ceremony, Mr Head, 37, agreed with Sir Alan and stressed the urgency of getting the “ball rolling” now as it could take one to two years to get it into the court. He said people are already dying without compensation, adding: “People are obviously getting older or ill health and stuff, and they are just settling their claims because they can't continue anymore with the process. They're exhausted.”

Mr Head, who became Britain’s youngest subpostmaster at just 18 in 2006, said he is currently “trapped” in a position of either accepting just 36% of his original claim - a seven-figure sum he did not want to disclose - or challenge the figure and risk losing out. He said he has been battling for nearly two years since he first made his claim.

Since then he has been forced to jump through hoops, going back and forth between lawyers, accountants and an independent panel. “The aim of the scheme is to put you back in the position you would have been had it not been for the scandal… but it's a million miles away from where it should be,” Mr Head said.

He said he doesn’t think the government will care about the threat of legal action, adding: “My honest opinion is that the government doesn't really care, because obviously for them, if it takes us 18 months to get it to court, all they'll be looking at is that it kicks the can down the road for another two years.”

More than 900 subpostmasters were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 after the faulty Horizon IT system made it look like they were swindling cash. Mr Head, who took over his local branch in West Bolden, near Sunderland, was accused of stealing more than £80,000 and ended up losing everything.

He said he is due to receive his OBE alongside other campaigners including Lee Castleton and Seema Misra. “Getting the OBE was a privilege but at the end of the day, has anything really changed? And the answer is no. The fight isn’t over. It will continue. Nothing will change for us.

"Just because you've been nominated for the award doesn’t mean that you’re going to step back or stop campaigning anymore. Of course it’s exhausting, of course it’s tiring but at the end of the day you’re standing up for what is right.”

Sir Alan, 71, who led 555 subpostmasters including Mr Head to victory in the High Court in 2019, said the group litigation order (GLO) for them was "a mess". In his email to victims, which was reported by Sky News, he said advice on how to speed up the scheme has been " ignored out of hand with the feeblest of excuses". Sir Alan said problems were widespread across the four compensation schemes and were not limited to the GLO one.

Last month the Business and Trade Committee chairman, Labour MP Liam Byrne, warned many feel like they face a "second trial" as they try to clear their names and get compensation. At the end of February £768million had been paid out - with more than half of that sum awarded in the last six months.

Mr Byrne today told the Mirror "justice delayed is justice denied". He said: "It’s welcome that ministers have doubled redress payments — but that progress is no substitute for finishing the job and getting every single cheque required in the post to every single Horizon victim.

“Our Committee has been crystal clear: justice delayed is justice denied. We’ve laid out precisely what must change to right these wrongs. Now ministers must not just listen, but lead — and turn words into deeds."

In response to Sir Alan's email, a Government spokesman said: "We pay tribute to all the postmasters who have suffered due to the Horizon software and past behaviour of the Post Office management and are continuing to work at pace to ensure all postmasters receive the financial redress and justice they deserve.

“However, we do not accept this forecast. The facts show we are making almost 90% of initial GLO offers within 40 working days of receiving completed claims. As of 31 March, 76% of the group had received full and final redress, or 80% of their offer and we are introducing facilitated discussions to quickly and fairly resolve challenges. So long as claimants respond reasonably promptly, we would expect to settle all claims by the end of this year. We have trebled the number of payments under this Government and are settling claims at a faster rate than ever before to provide full and fair redress.”