Post Office Scandal: Ex-Boss's Husband Suggested Changing 'Bugs' to 'Anomalies'
The Post Office altered how it described issues with its Horizon IT system based on advice from the husband of former boss Paula Vennells.
John Vennells suggested replacing the term "bugs" with "anomalies and exceptions," which senior executives believed was less emotive.
However, a lawyer for the inquiry criticized this as "Orwellian." The Post Office is currently under investigation for prosecuting hundreds of sub-postmasters for offenses related to the faulty Horizon software system.
Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office faced one of the most notorious miscarriages of justice in British history during prosecutions related to its Horizon IT system.
During a recent inquiry, Susan Crichton, the former general counsel of the Post Office, testified.
In an email from 2013, Ms. Crichton asked her husband, who did not work for the Post Office, for a non-emotional term to describe computer issues in the system.
Her husband suggested "exception or anomaly." The Post Office subsequently began using the term "exceptions" to refer to known system defects.
Mr. Blake questioned if terms suggested by Paula Vennells' husband had been adopted by the business, specifically the use of "exception" instead of "bug." Ms. Crichton agreed, stating it was Orwellian and a manipulation of language, as described in George Orwell's novel 1984, where the government uses opposite meanings for propaganda purposes.
However, a lawyer for the inquiry criticized this as "Orwellian." The Post Office is currently under investigation for prosecuting hundreds of sub-postmasters for offenses related to the faulty Horizon software system.
Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office faced one of the most notorious miscarriages of justice in British history during prosecutions related to its Horizon IT system.
During a recent inquiry, Susan Crichton, the former general counsel of the Post Office, testified.
In an email from 2013, Ms. Crichton asked her husband, who did not work for the Post Office, for a non-emotional term to describe computer issues in the system.
Her husband suggested "exception or anomaly." The Post Office subsequently began using the term "exceptions" to refer to known system defects.
Mr. Blake questioned if terms suggested by Paula Vennells' husband had been adopted by the business, specifically the use of "exception" instead of "bug." Ms. Crichton agreed, stating it was Orwellian and a manipulation of language, as described in George Orwell's novel 1984, where the government uses opposite meanings for propaganda purposes.
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