To draw your attention to Mr Bates vs The Post Office

Oh dear - she is not coming across well - didn't read the email that was sent to her...

Well that's the killer email: PO saying in 2010 they knew Fujitsu could remotely alter branch balances.

She's very good at "proof by tedium", isn't she?

Beer: <precise question>

Angela Van den Bogerd: <waffle waffle in as much as waffle waffle different thing waffle waffle waffle waffle not aware of waffle waffle waffle not any intention to waffle waffle waffle my team were waffle waffle>

Ooh, it's Jason Beer KC acting for the Inquiry today.

It'll be interesting to see the number of viewers. Recently it's been a few thousand, but there'll be plenty more for the next couple of days.

@nauticant thank you

B Day is on the Inquiry's youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@postofficehorizonitinquiry947

The starting time is normally 10am but recently they've been having 9.45 starts and I think that's the case with Bogerd. However, if you join the channel a bit late, you can set the playback speed to 1.25x and you slowly catch up as the proceedings go on. Refresh the youtube link shortly before 9.45 and you'll see where to go.

What channel is it on?

Thank you, @newnamethanks ! Shan't argue: whether I deserve one or not, I need one!

🍷for you@PerkingFaintly, you deserve it.

Unless I state to the contrary, I would only accept the evidence of Mrs Van den Bogerd and Mr Beal in controversial areas of fact in issue in this Common Issue trial if these are clearly and uncontrovertibly corroborated by contemporaneous documents.

Buuurrrrn

Thanks so much for the reminder, @nauticant .

I'm shall put it on in the background while tackling the next rounds in:

a) my ongoing complaint to the Energy Ombudsman (year-long cock-up by power company); and

b) my ongoing complaint to the Information Commissioner (major organisation systematically breaking Data Protection law).

<sigh>

I'm going to be fizzing with Righteous Anger all day, aren't I?

Best make myself some strong

Today's bombshell came from Chris Aujard, who succeeded Susan Crichton as Post Office General Counsel. He revealed that the executive committee wanted to pause all prosecutions of subpostmasters, but Paula Vennells wanted some to continue. Susan Crichton's evidence was that she also said that prosecutions should stop but was ignored.

Earlier, there was evidence that it was Vennells who authorised Post Office spending over £300k pursuing former subpostmaster Lee Castleton for an alleged debt of £23k. This bankrupted Castleton and ruined his life, but Post Office weren't interested in that, nor were they really interested in recovering the debt. They spent the money to discourage other subpostmasters from challenging Horizon.

Is everyone, including @PerkingFaintly, ready for Angela Van den Bogerd tomorrow and Friday? She is a highly anticipated witness because of her reputation for lying about very important things in court, along with many other behaviours. In the judgment of the Common Issues trial, the big one that destroyed pretty much everything the Post Office was seeking to argue in court, the judge made this remarkable statement:

Unless I state to the contrary, I would only accept the evidence of Mrs Van den Bogerd and Mr Beal in controversial areas of fact in issue in this Common Issue trial if these are clearly and uncontrovertibly corroborated by contemporaneous documents.

Wow. It's really worrying that the C of E seriously considered appointing a Bishop so lacking in basic ethics.

Thank you Mr Bates, I believe you've saved the people of London from the wrath of the Almighty. 🙏

@Anisette She wasn't working towards holy orders. She was already an ordained non-stipendiary (i.e. unpaid) minister in the Anglican church when she became Post Office CEO. She continued her role in the church until 2021. According to reports, she was one of three candidates shortlisted to become Bishop of London in 2017.

Also significant today was Paula Vennell's note of a meeting with Crichton. She wrote, "Susan was possibly more loyal to her professional conduct requirements and put her integrity as a lawyer above the interests of the business". This demonstrates clearly that Vennells was out of her depth. A lawyer is, first and foremost, an officer of the court regardless of who pays their wages. As such, Crichton was required to put her integrity ahead of Post Office's interests. Any half-decent CEO would know this.

This is just extraordinary. In any well-run business, the duty of the legal department to comply with professional conduct standards is taken as a given and is valued. I was talking recently to someone who had been over the same sort of period in the legal department of a very large and successful business. The head of department was on the Board of Directors and essentially it was axiomatic that the legal department's advice had to be followed. If the department head vetoed a deal, no matter how lucrative, it didn't happen.

It's off the point, but I do wonder about Vennell's religious affiliations if she seriously believed that employees had a duty to forget about integrity if it conflicted with the Post Office's interests. Wasn't she working towards taking holy orders over a chunk of this time? You have to think that if there really was a god she'd have been struck with lightning long ago.

Quote:

According to Davies, Read wrote in an email on 16 December 2022 that his “bonus situation is intolerable”. The Post Office annual report shows that he was paid £137,000 in bonuses for the year 2022-23.

Only £137,000 in bonuses on top of his £400K+ salary? Poor love, he must have been really hand to mouth.

Vennell clearly missed her true calling as a politician prepared to state black is white with a straight face. To put in writing that a colleague is putting her professional standards before the interests of an employer is both supremely arrogant and supremely stupid. Every time I look at this scandal I'm appalled by something new.

Also significant today was Paula Vennell's note of a meeting with Crichton. She wrote, "Susan was possibly more loyal to her professional conduct requirements and put her integrity as a lawyer above the interests of the business". This demonstrates clearly that Vennells was out of her depth. A lawyer is, first and foremost, an officer of the court regardless of who pays their wages. As such, Crichton was required to put her integrity ahead of Post Office's interests. Any half-decent CEO would know this.

It is also clear from the evidence that Vennells and the then chair, Alice Perkins, considered protecting the reputation of the business as far more important than finding out the truth or any concern for those subpostmasters whose lives had been ruined by Post Office. They didn't want a proper independent investigation by Second Sight. They were only interested in an investigation that delivered the result Post Office wanted and blamed Crichton for the fact that Second Sight didn't give them what they wanted.

Van Den Bogerd is on later this week. That will be interesting. It seems clear that she was at the heart of Post Office's attempts to cover up the truth. Other highlights to come include Vennells (22-24 May), Perkins (5-6 June), Ron Warmington and Ian Henderson of Second Sight (18 June), Gareth Jenkins, the Fujitsu engineer who is under investigation for perjury (25-28 June) and Tim Parker (Post Office chair whilst Bates & Co finally got to court and who oversaw the strategy that appeared to be an attempt to make sure they ran out of money - 2-3 July).

Well, it does mention they might get hold of their members of parliament. Copulation is one of their specialties according to press reports about the number of MPs suspended or standing down due to their sexual incontinence.

"result in copulation"?

A fascinating day of testimony by General Counsel Susan Crichton. Broadly, and I believe her even though some of her testimony I didn't believe, she was supportive of the 2nd Sight investigation being independent while Alice Perkins and Paula Vennells were vexed considerably that they couldn't be brought to heel and to say safe things.

This was one of the highlights of today's evidence (read it carefully):

Current PO Chief Exec Nick Read has allegedly repeatedly threatened to resign unless his pay was increased.

Post Office boss ‘obsessed with his pay’, claims former HR director
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/apr/23/post-office-boss-obsessed-with-his-pay-claims-former-hr-director

Never has the MN phrase seemed so apposite: "Off you fuck, cunty chops."