A victim of the Post Office Horizon scandal has dedicated her OBE to the sub-postmasters who lost their lives before seeing justice, as the Government announced a sweeping review of compensation. Sarah Johnson, a former sub-postmistress from County Durham, received the honour at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday, calling it “bittersweet” without the 700 others caught in the IT disaster.
Johnson was among the first to take legal action against the Post Office in 2019, after being wrongly accused of stealing £36,000. The Horizon system, faulty software that made accounts appear short, led to hundreds of prosecutions, bankruptcies, and at least four suicides. “This medal is for those who never got to see this day,” she said outside the palace. “For the ones who took their own lives, the ones who died penniless. The Government’s apology means nothing if they don’t fix the compensation now.”
Her words came hours after Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds confirmed a full overhaul of the compensation scheme, which has been criticised for delays and low payouts. “The current system is not working. Too many victims are still waiting, and some have died waiting,” Reynolds told the Commons. He promised a single, simplified process with independent oversight, to be detailed in a white paper next month.
But for the 2,400 sub-postmasters affected, trust is in short supply. Many have been paid only a fraction of what they lost, with some forced to sign gagging clauses. The new process will remove those clauses, Reynolds said, and offer interim payments within 20 working days.
Johnson nodded at the news but remained cautious. “I’ve heard promises before. They said it would be sorted by now. My friend Lee Castleton, he spent everything fighting this. He died of a heart attack last year, still waiting for a penny.” She paused, clutching her medal. “I’ll believe it when I see the money in people’s accounts.”
The scandal has already cost the taxpayer over £1 billion in compensation and legal fees, but campaigners argue the true cost is the livelihoods and lives destroyed. The new review will also examine if the Post Office should be held in contempt of court for its handling of evidence.
For now, Johnson’s OBE stands as a symbol of resilience. “I’m not a hero,” she said. “I’m just a woman who wanted the truth. The heroes are the ones who couldn’t stay. We owe them the justice they never got.”
