A special delivery of justice

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** The Post Office Horizon scandal
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** and what it tells us about
people-power
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Promo pic from Mr Bates and the Post Office
Mr Bates vs the Post Office

The Post Office denied it. Official channels didn't help. For years, innocent staff struggled to persuade anyone that there was a problem with the Horizon accounting machines.

But determined investigators, and now the ITV drama Mr. Bates vs the Post Office ([link removed]) , have brought a widespread understanding of - and outrage over - this miscarriage of justice.


** Freedom of Information was key to uncovering evidence
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It took sustained investigation from a number of different people — some professional journalists, others citizen reporters motivated by a strong sense of justice — to challenge the official narrative and uncover the facts that eventually made the truth impossible to hide: the Sub-Postmasters were innocent, and the Post Office had done them a terrible disservice.

Eleanor Shaikh

FOI was fundamental to many of the findings. The right to information, available to all of us, means anyone can make a valuable contribution towards a just cause.

Our FOI website WhatDoTheyKnow ([link removed]) lowers the barriers even further.

Sometimes, as we see here, issues are complicated or take years to resolve, but every piece of evidence goes to build a greater whole — as demonstrated by our recent 'Uncovering Truth' award winner Eleanor Shaikh, who has been tireless in pursuing the finer details of the Post Office case. You can read her story here. ([link removed])


** Not sure where to begin with FOI?
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** Join our free masterclasses
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As we've seen, FOI is a powerful tool, and that's why we're offering free training to campaign and advocacy groups who are working towards a better, fairer world.

If that sounds like you, sign up for one or more sessions on our Eventbrite page ([link removed]) . Spaces are limited, so don't delay.
Reserve your space now ([link removed])


** What's Parliament doing about it?
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There was an emergency debate last week, which you can read on TheyWorkForYou ([link removed]) , and there's talk of new legislation to quash the convictions of all wrongly-accused Sub-Postmasters.

Don't forget, for any topic you have a particular interest in, you can sign up for alerts ([link removed]) and you'll receive an email every time your chosen keyword or phrase is mentioned in Parliament. It covers forthcoming business too, so it's a great way to keep abreast of the news.


** And if there's anything you want the government to know
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You can write to your MP using WriteToThem ([link removed]) (even if you don't know who your MP is - all you need to know is your own postcode).


** Want to support Freedom of Information?
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Your contributions go a long way to ensuring the UK's institutions are held to account. If you're able, please do consider a one-off or regular donation.
Thank you very much.
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