LONDON, March 19 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:

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Scheme designed withfamilymembers'inputto ensuredelivery ofredress as swiftly as possible, including in caseswith limitedor lostevidence.

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Familygroup Lost Chances,who have long campaigned for justice,updatedin personbythe Post OfficeMinister on the scheme today

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Personal, face-to-face apologies from organisationstobegin as partofrestorative justice programme for postmasters and their families

The Government has today announceddetails ofanew redress scheme for close family members of postmasters most severely affected by the Horizon scandal, whichis expected toopen insummer 2026.

Thiswill extendsupport beyond thealmost£1.5 billion ofpayments alreadymade topostmasters themselves,directlyrecognisingthat the scandal's devastating consequences wereexperiencednot just by those running post offices, butalsoby those closest to them.

In many cases, family memberssuffered serious harm to their mental health and wellbeing as a direct result of their loved ones' experiences.

The scheme has been designed to be as accessible and straightforward as possible - minimising bureaucratic barriers so that families receiveredresswithout delay.It also fulfils a key commitment made by the Government following the publication of Volume 1 of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry final report.

Post Office Minister, Blair McDougall will meet representatives from campaign group Lost Chances today to discuss the scheme.Theyhave been involved in the design of the scheme alongside other postmasters and interested groups.

Minister for Postal Affairs, Blair McDougall,said:

"The Horizon scandal caused immeasurable harm - not just to the postmasters wrongly accused of crimes, but to their families who stood beside and suffered alongside them.

"Today's scheme recognises that harm andwillmakesure those families receive the support they deserve, as quickly and simply as possible.

"We have listened carefully to those affected and designed this scheme to reach as many people as we can without putting unnecessary barriers in their way."

Recognising that many family members will face real difficulty in obtaining formal evidence of harm suffered years ago, the Government has developedtwo routes to redress.

Family members whocanprovide contemporaneous evidenceof personal injury,or who have an ongoing medical condition arising from Horizon, can apply for a full assessed personal injury claim.

For those who cannot provide this level of evidence, a new events-based route has been created. Where a postmaster relative experienced one of the mostserious consequencesof the scandal - such as criminal prosecution or bankruptcy - the Government willoffer fixedrate recognition payments without requiringfurther evidenceof personal harm.

This approach ensures that family members are not left without any recourse simply because recordsdecades agoare no longer available.

Alongside the new scheme, the Governmenttoday gives its support forapostmaster-ledrestorative justiceprogrammewhich it isfundingjointly with the Post Office and Fujitsu. The Restorative Justice Council (RJC) istodaypublishing a report setting outhowtheproject will be delivered.

This will include the opportunity for postmasters and their families tojoin facilitated meetings withstafffrom Post Office, Fujitsu and the DepartmentforBusiness and Trade to receive personal, face-to-face apologies from organisations involved in the scandal - to add to the public apologies already given.

The Department for Business and Trade, the Post Office and Fujitsu have agreed to jointly fund and support the programme over a five-year period.

The programme was developed in close collaboration with postmasters themselves and follows a pilot phase whose findings were published by the RJC in October 2025.

Lord Arbuthnot, of the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board,said:

"Iwelcome the Government's proposals to provide redress to the family members of Horizon postmasters, many of whom suffered immeasurable harm because of this dreadful saga.

"The Horizon Compensation Advisory Board has helped to shape the scheme's design and will continue tomonitorclosely the development of the scheme and to provide its experience andexpertisewherehelpful.

"Whilst the wrongs of the Horizon scandal cannot be undone, this scheme will help to give family members the recognition that they deserve."

ENDS

Notes to editors

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The schemefor families of Horizon Scandal postmastersfollows the Government's acceptance of recommendation 18 of the Post Office HorizonIT Inquiry Volume 1 report, and recommendations from the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board.The restorative justice programmedetailedalso follows the Government's acceptance of recommendation19 of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry Volume 1 report.

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The Government has today written to the Lost Chances group setting out the details of the scheme. A copy of the letter has beenpublished online : Horizon Family Members Redress Scheme: letters from the Minister for Small Business and Economic Transformation - GOV.UK

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.