The Justice Secretary is holding crunch talks with judges on Tuesday on expediting clearing the names of hundreds of subpostmasters.
The Justice Secretary is holding crunch talks with judges on Tuesday on expediting clearing the names of hundreds of subpostmasters who were wrongfully convicted in the Horizon scandal.
Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride said the discussions are under way as the Government considers ways to overturn the convictions, including possible legislation.
Ministers “intend to move very quickly” to resolve the issue, he said, after the miscarriage of justice was brought into the spotlight by an ITV drama.
Mr Stride told Times Radio: “Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, is in discussions with senior people within the justice system, judges and so on, to look at what the options are to make sure that we push through that backlog of appeals as quickly as possible.”
On Sky News, he said: “My understanding is that they are happening now.
“So this is something that is happening hour by hour. It’s not something that’s going to happen next week. It is happening right now and we intend to move very quickly.”
A solution could be announced by the end of the week, the Cabinet minister said.
With more than 700 subpostmasters having received criminal convictions for allegations such as theft and false accounting, Mr Stride was challenged over the slow pace of them being cleared and whether the Government was asleep at the wheel.
Published: by Radio NewsHub
