Justice fight for victims of scandals

Tiverton and Honiton Lib Dem MP Richard Foord says an independent body would ensure fairness

IN recent years we’ve seen a growing number of major public scandals come to light. Whether that be the Infected Blood scandal or the Post Office Horizon scandal, tens of thousands of people have seen their lives turned upside down due to no fault of their own.

Yet while each of these injustices are different, there is one common thread that binds them together – the lack of proper redress. Far too often we see people left in limbo, waiting years and having to jump through endless hurdles just to see justice and get recompense for their loss.

That’s why in Parliament last week, I led a debate on the need for urgent reform the way these redress schemes are managed.

Currently, there is only a very weak set of guidelines for how these matters should be addressed. This means every redress scheme that is established is done differently, with differing criteria and structures. Because of this, it’s often hard for those affected to engage and have confidence in the process.

You will recall this from the shocking miscarriage of justice that was the Post Office Horizon scandal. When these matters come to light, allowing the process for addressing the damage done to be managed in-house by the perpetrating organisations means the victims rarely ever get a fair hearing, or just compensation.

What’s more, if these schemes fail to properly address the pain and damage caused, it can result in long and drawn-out legal cases. This not only prolongs the agony for those caught up in the fight, but also means the eventual compensation they receive is greatly diminished, due to needing to pay huge legal fees.

In last Thursday’s debate I made this clear to MPs by echoing the words of Lee Castleton, a sub-postmaster affected by the scandal, who said that “during the past 25 years £135 million has been paid to some of the victims, but we’ve had £150 million plus paid to lawyers”.

The current system is dysfunctional and continues to let down those affected by some of the worst miscarriages of justice in British history.

It lets down people like those 555 sub-postmasters - including Janine Powell of Tiverton, who was wrongfully imprisoned days after her daughter’s 10th birthday. No amount of money can make up for those 18 months away from her daughter, but can allow closure and for those who have been wronged to begin moving forward with their lives.

However, Horizon is only one aspect of this failure to give people the support they need.

During the debate I also highlighted the case of local resident Nigel Cairns, who took out a loan to rebuild his property – only for the bank to alter the terms of the agreement under threat of foreclosure. The Financial Ombudsman awarded him just £1,500 in compensation for associated stress, and he continues to grapple with the aftermath to this day.

Janine and Nigel are just two of those whose lives have been ruined through no fault of their own and who did only what they supposed was right. The system is plainly not fit for purpose because of neglect by the very institutions we are supposed to trust.

In other times, scandals have had a direct impact on the health of thousands of people. There are horrendous cases of people affected by sodium valproate, mesh implants, and infected blood – including a constituent whose friend saw her life turned upside down due to being given contaminated blood.

She told me the pain of having to plan her own funeral in her 20s, giving up a promising career, enduring multiple health problems including infertility and failed IVF, and the daily battle with mental health issues – all of which caused the end of her marriage. She still awaits justice to this day.

To give these people affected by scandals which have either happened or are yet to take place, we need a robust, comprehensive, and fair system of redress.

As it stands, inquiries and redress schemes are set up from scratch, rather than having a standard framework or process for their work. This means each scheme tries to reinvent the wheel and ends up needlessly putting lives and livelihoods on hold due to delays and changing goalposts.

This is why we need an independent, arms-length body to ensure fairness, transparency, and accessibility for victims is at the core of all these schemes. Victims of scandals should not be made to feel like they are the ones in the wrong, and they should not be made to spend years fighting to see justice done. I will continue to work with MPs from across Parliament to make sure these wrongs are finally righted.

Yui Mok/2021/PA > Former post office workers outside the Royal Courts of Justice, London, after their convictions were overturned by the Court of Appeal