Former subpostmasters and Post Office branch staff who were wrongfully convicted of crimes based on flawed computer evidence in Scotland have had their convictions quashed.
Emergency legislation to exonerate wrongfully convicted Post Office workers has completed its journey through Scottish Parliament and each will now receive initial compensation of £600,000, with the ability to claim more as financial redress for their suffering.
This mirrors legislation in Westminster, which covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Westminster, emergency legislation was pushed through last month to overturn the convictions of hundreds of former subpostmasters and their staff. Prime minister Rishi Sunak promised the blanket exoneration after an ITV drama and documentary about the scandal angered the public.
Scotland’s justice secretary, Angela Constance, wrote to subpostmasters to set out the next steps. “Of course, no amount of compensation can fully mend the lives that were torn apart by this miscarriage of justice,” she said.
“I will be writing to those affected to tell them their convictions have been quashed and ensuring court records are changed, so the victims of this scandal can have their good names restored as quickly as possible. They have already waited too long for justice.”
In September 2020, following a large number of cases referred for appeal by England’s Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), the Scottish CCRC took what it described as an “unusual step” and wrote to more than 70 people with potential wrongful convictions. It began reviewing the first set of cases in March 2021.
Scotland has a separate legal system, and the Scottish CCRC is traditionally about 10% of the size of the CCRC in England in terms of cases.