Fujitsu has agreed to begin talks with the UK government on contributing to compensation for victims of the Post Office scandal.
Hundreds of sub-postmasters were falsely accused of stealing from their branches between 1999 and 2015.
Fujitsu developed the faulty Horizon computer system responsible for erroneous shortfalls in accounting which led to wrongful convictions. They also supported the Post Office in its prosecutions.
More than a year ago, Fujitsu boss Paul Patterson said the company had a “moral obligation” to contribute towards redress for victims.
Business secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Mr Patterson today held a “positive and constructive” meeting in Japan – where Fujitsu agreed to begin talks on compensation.
The UK government “welcomes Fujitsu’s repeated commitment to its moral obligation to contribute” towards compensation for the Horizon scandal victims, a joint statement said.
Ahead of the completion of the inquiry into the scandal, the pair “agreed to progress discussions regarding Fujitsu’s contribution, acknowledging many parties are involved,” it added.
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Officials will “continue to engage with Fujitsu”, but the UK government will not be making a “running commentary” on discussions, the statement said.
It also said the government is “grateful” for Fujitsu’s engagement with the Post Office inquiry “and its continued focus on delivering its public services commitments in the UK”.
‘Utter disgrace’
It comes as the widow of a Post Office scandal victim, who received a compensation offer days after his death, described her situation as an “utter disgrace”.
Janet Walters, 68, lost her husband Terry in February – a week before a letter arrived offering “less than half” of his original claim for financial redress.
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Terry Walters was one of 555 sub-postmasters who won a legal battle against the Post Office in 2019.
Janet described the length of time many victims have had to wait for an offer of compensation as another “scandal”.
“I’ve told them I will not accept [the offer],” Janet told Sky News. “I think it’s an utter disgrace.
“It’s a scandal what they did with the Horizon system, it’s a scandal now because of the length of time it’s taken [on redress].”
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Thousands waiting for compensation
New figures show more than £768m has been now paid to more than 5,100 victims across all redress schemes.
The Department for Business and Trade said this was a “more than tripling” of the total amount of redress paid since June 2024.
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There are, however, still hundreds waiting for compensation in the GLO (Group Litigation Order) scheme, with more than 200 yet to receive full redress.
There are also more than 4,000 yet to be paid in the Horizon Shortfall Scheme (HSS), although since last month, over 700 have received compensation.
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In a separate statement after the meeting in Japan, Mr Reynolds said: “We must never forget the lives ruined by the Horizon scandal and no amount of redress can take away that pain. But justice can and must be done.
“This government is determined to hold those responsible to account and will continue to make rapid progress on compensation and redress.
“Since we took office, we have more than tripled the total amount of redress paid to victims, and today we took another significant step towards justice.”
