Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much Post Office Ltd has spent on prosecutions of sub-postmasters in cases relating to the Horizon accounting system.

The Government recognises the critical role that post offices play in communities and for small businesses across the UK. This is why the Government committed to safeguard the post office network and protect existing rural services. The overall number of post offices across the UK remains at its most stable in decades with over 11,500 branches.

While the Post Office is publicly owned it operates as an independent, commercial business. The relationship with its sub-postmasters and the management of its IT systems are operational matters for the Post Office.