Nothing has changed under Labour, say Post Office victims
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Victims of the Post Office scandal said that “nothing has changed” under Labour as ITV’s drama about the miscarriage of justice won three prizes at the National Television Awards (NTAs).
Mr Bates vs The Post Office, a four-part series about the Horizon IT scandal, won the NTA impact award for creating a “huge cultural shift” at the O2 in London on Wednesday. It also picked up awards for new drama and drama performance.
More than 700 sub-postmasters were wrongly prosecuted by the Post Office between 1999 and 2015, as Fujitsu’s faulty Horizon IT system made it appear money was missing at their branches.
Jo Hamilton, a former sub-postmistress, hit out at the Government for the lack of action on the scandal as she collected the award surrounded by fellow victims, saying: “I went to Westminster a couple of weeks back and saw the new minister and trust me, nothing has changed.”
“Almost all of these people behind me haven’t been paid yet. And out of the group of 555, more than 300 haven’t been paid yet including former sub-postmaster Sir Alan Bates, they offered him 30 per cent of his claim.”
A spokesman for the Business Department said: “We recognise the immeasurable suffering postmasters have endured and that they have waited too long to receive redress. That’s why we are working tirelessly across government to bring them some relief with full, fair and swift redress.
“Already we have paid out over ￡289 million to over 2,800 people across four redress schemes. We have also made 253 GLO offers and introduced a new compensation scheme to speed up redress for those with overturned convictions.”
Monica Dolan, the actress who played Ms Hamilton in the series, said: “We were so grateful and proud of the audience’s response to this drama anyway, so to win this award is absolutely incredible.”
Dolan thanked the team behind the ITV drama, the actors and the sub-postmasters for “trusting us to tell their story”, adding that it has been “the privilege of our lives”.
Toby Jones secured the best drama performance gong for his role as Sir Alan Bates, one of more than 550 claimants who have brought legal action against the Post Office.
Sir Alan married his long-term partner Suzanne Sercombe on Sir Richard Branson’s private Caribbean island in a ceremony officiated by the Virgin tycoon last week.
Sir Alan said the decision to marry his partner after more than three decades together was partly prompted by the knighthood he was awarded in the King’s Birthday Honours list in June.
Strictly Come Dancing secured the talent show award at the NTAs on Wednesday, despite the BBC show facing a storm of controversy over the alleged treatment of contestants.
Co-host Tess Daly thanked all the fans who voted for them, saying the win is a “wonderful gift” ahead of the 20th anniversary series kicking off on Saturday.
Fellow host Claudia Winkleman also praised the “most wonderful team” behind the programme and the “brilliant celebrities who take part”, adding: “This means everything.”
Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly picked up the award for TV presenting for the 23rd year in a row.
The duo kicked off their successful night by receiving the Bruce Forsyth entertainment award for the reality series I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, which they host.
Also in attendance was Kate Garraway, who collected an award for the best authored documentary for Kate Garraway: Derek’s Story, which chronicled the final year of her husband’s life. The Good Morning Britain presenter dedicated the award to him.