(qlmbusinessnews.com Thurs, 11th Jan, 2024) London, UK —
“Calls Intensify for Review as Fujitsu's Role in UK's Worst Miscarriage of Justice Lingers”
The UK government is under increasing pressure to reassess over £2 billion in contracts awarded to Fujitsu following a 2019 court ruling linking the company's Horizon IT system to accounting errors blamed on post office operators. The scandal resulted in the wrongful prosecution of more than 900 individuals. Fujitsu, maintaining its status as a key “strategic supplier,” has secured 101 new contracts worth £2.04 billion since the court ruling, including agreements with the Home Office, HM Revenue and Customs, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Department for Work and Pensions.
While Scotland's government has initiated a review of Fujitsu contracts, there's no confirmation from the UK Cabinet Office on whether it will follow suit. Critics question why Fujitsu, implicated in the Horizon scandal, continues to receive substantial government contracts. The 2019 court ruling exposed flaws in the Horizon system, described as one of the most significant miscarriages of justice in UK history. Fujitsu, having earned nearly £7 billion from 200 IT contracts since 2012, faces potential financial sanctions if found at fault.
MPs on the Commons business and trade committee are set to grill Fujitsu executives, and the Metropolitan police have interviewed two Fujitsu employees under caution regarding perjury and perverting the course of justice allegations linked to Post Office trials. The government, with a list of strategic suppliers, utilizes a crown representative system that assigns performance ratings to companies. Vincent Kelly, the crown representative for Fujitsu, is under scrutiny amid calls for a fresh examination of government contracting practices.
The public accounts committee, reflecting on weaknesses in government contracting after the collapse of Carillion in 2018, emphasized the need for a strategy beyond cost control. The RAG rating system, deemed ineffective, and the crown representative system face renewed calls for robust oversight to prevent strategic suppliers from operating as opaque entities within Whitehall.
#Fujitsu #HorizonScandal #GovernmentContracts #UKJustice #PublicAccountsCommittee #CabinetOffice #HorizonIT #GovernmentOversight #StrategicSuppliers #UKNews
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