Mr Bates vs the Post Office

[kashmir]

He’s getting his arse handed to him, I find it distressing watching him squirm Would anyone care to join me lighting a candle for him

 

[SkyBlueFlux]

You don’t have to be Hurcule Poirot, and nor do you need to be Alan Turing to appreciate that the system was the most likely explanation by some distance, irrespective of what others might be telling you.

Not only should that have been readily apparent, but also at a relatively early stage.

One obvious question should have been (which any reasonably competent FD could have answered) was if the SPs were telling the truth, then where would the money be? A check of the holding account for cash surpluses vs the pre-Horizon period would surely have provided some clue. It’s clear that no senior decision maker stepped back and even asked any question based on the predication of the SP’s innocence.

Senior executives are well rewarded because they are supposed to have the wherewithal, vision and experience to take a wider view of the situations their organisations face - good and bad. This requires them to think in a way that is objective and logical and to ask questions of what they are being told; in terms of both themselves and others. It is important to a certain extent to defer to others who have levels of expertise that you do not, but not unequivocally or slavishly. People will tell you what you, or they, want to hear. To suggest otherwise is pitifully naive.

For whatever reason, no senior executive seemed remote capable of applying this perfectly reasonable and proportionate approach. Not only for the sake of the people within the organisation, but also the organisation itself.

They are all cunts as far as I’m concerned. They completely failed to do their job and have caused extreme misery as a consequence.

I’m not normally one for witch hunts, people make mistakes, but it seems to me that this sorry episode extends way beyond the merely negligent on behalf of large numbers of senior executives at the PO and there should be severe consequences for them in order for justice to be done.

This is a great post and summarises my feelings very well on the PO leadership.

One thing I’ve learnt in my roles is that you need to try and generate a culture where people aren’t afraid to come to you with truth. They still might not, and you need to be wary of that, but if you develop a culture where people think you will shoot the messenger then you’re making your job nearly impossible.

I once told the team in a previous role that if there was some kind of data breach and they told me about it straight away, I would defend them 100% and ensure they got no punishment other than maybe some corrective training. However if they tried to hide a data breach from me, or they delayed bringing it to my attention, then the consequences would be way worse. Lo and behold about 6 months later we had a data breach due to human error, and fortunately the analyst who made the error came to me the minute he found out it had happened. Which allowed us to fix things before they got beyond our control. These things happen in business, if execs turn it into a punitive exercise in hierarchy then they are making a rod for their own backs.

It seems to me like the PO staff who knew there were issues didn’t feel comfortable reporting them up the chain. It’s quite clear that the culture of the place was entirely broken at pretty much every level.

 

[tregyblue61]

Absolute slime ball.

 

[mosssideblue]

This guy is an absolute twat. Knew they were probably innocent and went after them anyway.

Because they were getting bonnuses for each one

 

[inchy14]

Stephen Bradshaw in the dock. Security and Fraud guy at the Post Office.

Scouser.


Yes, people told me something was wrong, but those above didn't. Nothing for me to see so I carried on ignoring the problem.

Not my fault.

Excuse me if I don’t trust the ****.

As for them getting bonuses…. No fucking words.

 

[Gorton_Tubster]

It'll all be blamed on processes, systems, working procedures... And no one will go to jail, no one will be punished (Beyind the uncomfortable spotlight on them now). And because of that, this sort of shit that affects peoples life, will happen again, and again and again, as it already has been for decades. It really annoys me that these twats get away with it just because growth and profit are the most important thing.

They need to start really punishing these people, that way,, only that way will they understand the impact of their actions and behaviours and things will improve.

But this guy... I have worked with that type time aand again, no skills, no knowledge, just promoted up the food chain based upon time served... That really happens in the RM. Crazy.

 

[Cellarite]

It’s taken a TV programme, emphasising the pain and anguish these poor people have suffered, because the majority of the great British public can’t imagine situations unless they are on a screen in their living rooms. This has been going on years, an utter disgrace.

The majority of the great British public are trying to get through the everyday, keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. Do you expect normal, everyday people to keep abreast of every scandal? What utter snobbery.

 

[Jimmieblue]

The majority of the great British public are trying to get through the everyday, keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. Do you expect normal, everyday people to keep abreast of every scandal? What utter snobbery.

I’ve been a normal, everyday person all my life. Born in a 2 up 2 down, outside toilet, no bathroom. Together with my husband raised 2 children, now have 6 grandchildren. Since retiring have done voluntary work. I am not a snob.

 

[mike1923]

Debate on media outlets today claiming Fujitsu should be solely responsible for paying all the compo and not tax payers.

I think that is unavoidable because the PO imo are more to blame that Fujitsu.

Had this been managed professionally and, in a timey manner, then we wouldn't be facing this issue

No chance. Whilst their systems might have been a disaster and caused most of this shit, it wasn’t Fujitsu that prosecuted and jailed these innocent people

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

The majority of the great British public are trying to get through the everyday, keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. Do you expect normal, everyday people to keep abreast of every scandal? What utter snobbery.

Plus, it’s part of the human condition that the poetry of a drama can bring something to life in a way that the prose of the basic narrative simply cannot.