CCRC Decision on 44 Post Office Prosecutions Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities
Navendu Mishra
Main Page: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)Department Debates - View all Navendu Mishra's debates with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities
CCRC Decision on 44 Post Office Prosecutions
Navendu Mishra Excerpts(3 years, 6 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
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Paul Scully
Yes—one of the reasons for making it a non-statutory inquiry is so that we can get the answers quickly, study them, put things in place, and ensure that the Post Office has put the structures in place to ensure that it never happens again. We can keep its feet to the fire to make that work.
Navendu Mishra (Stockport) (Lab)
The Communication Workers Union has been campaigning on this issue for a long time. I join others in paying tribute to the right hon. Member for North Durham (Mr Jones) for getting this urgent question. The inquiry that the Minister has set up seems to lack statutory powers. Will he comment on that? I know that he has made other comments on that matter. Also, how much taxpayers’ money was spent opposing appeals on the sub-postmaster scandal?
Paul Scully
On a statutory inquiry, as I have said in a number of answers, I want to ensure that we can get the answers quickly, rather than having people, as I described in a previous answer, lawyering up, which adds expense and time for the postmasters who have been through so much. I deal with the CWU on a regular basis. In terms of taxpayers’ money, the Post Office has funded the prosecutions through its own profits.