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Victory! Appeal court throws out postmaster convictions after years of injustice
Union calls for criminal investigation into ‘complicit’ Post Office bosses
Former post office workers celebrate outside the Royal Courts of Justice, London, after having their convictions overturned by the Court of Appeal

THIRTY-NINE former postmasters wrongly convicted of stealing from the Post Office had their names cleared by the Court of Appeal yesterday after years of campaigning.

There were emotional scenes outside the Royal Courts of Justice as some of those convicted as a result of errors generated by a faulty computer system emerged to cheers from supporters.

Post Office bosses issued abject apologies, but only after the organisation spent years — and more than £100 million — prosecuting employees for non-existent cash shortfalls, despite knowing that the Horizon system did not work.

Grandmother Jo Hamilton said: “I was given a 12-month supervision order and have a criminal record. But I did nothing wrong. I told them about the problem but they said I was the only one.”

POL chief executive Nick Read said that the quashing of the convictions was “a vital milestone in fully and properly addressing the past” and acknowledged that “there must be compensation that reflects what has happened.”

Labour shadow business secretary Ed Miliband welcomed the “huge victory” but added that there were “so many other names to clear.”

He said: “We're pushing for a proper inquiry with teeth to get to the bottom of how this scandal can have happened — and who was responsible. The government’s inquiry risks being a whitewash."

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