Why the Post Office paid £600m to stay shackled to the faulty Horizon system
Summary
The Post Office has spent over £600m to keep using a problem-filled computer system called Horizon, even though it decided to stop using it 10 years ago. They could not get rid of it, even if it caused big trouble, because the original agreement with the computer company Fujitsu did not give them ownership of the important computer codes.Key Facts
- The Post Office paid more than £600m to continue using the Horizon IT system which had problems.
- The original deal in 1999 with Fujitsu didn't allow the Post Office access to key parts of the Horizon system.
- Since 2012, the Post Office has wanted to change suppliers, but it was too costly.
- The Post Office wrongly accused around 700 sub-postmasters of theft and fraud due to errors by the Horizon system.
- A try to change the system with a new one from IBM in 2016 failed and cost £40m.
- The Post Office contract with Fujitsu is set to end in March 2026, but it might need to be extended.
- The Post Office finally got rights related to the Horizon software and code in 2023.
- The computerizing deal of the Post Office branch network involved the Post Office, Fujitsu, its subsidiary ICL Pathway, and the government.
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