ITV
Viewers outraged by the injustice documented in ITV’s Mr Bates vs The Post Office have called for the former Paula Vennells to be stripped of her CBE.
The four-part drama series follows the true story of mysterious financial losses appearing in village post office tills as a result of a new computer system called Horizon that had been installed across the country.
It saw numerous postmasters wrongly prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 for theft, false accounting, and/or fraud.
People have been quick to express their outrage at the injustice on show in the programme, with one person saying: “I’ve only watched 5 mins of #PostOfficeScandal drama and I’m shouting at TV. Not sure I can watch it!!!”
Another added: “Less than 20 mins in and not sure I can watch this. Sick to my stomach #PostOfficeScandal.”
There have also been calls for the former CEO of the Post Office to have her CBE stripped, with campaigners such as Carol Vorderman and Kevan Jones leading the charge.
Bates has also mounted pressure on the government to act on the matter.
He turned down an OBE offered in honour of his relentless campaigning, telling Good Morning Britain:
“I was offered an OBE but I’ve always said it’s not just about me. It’s about the whole group. But as far as myself goes I couldn’t accept it.
“I mean it would have been a slap in the face to the rest of the group because Paula Venells, the CEO for many years of Post Office, received a CBE for her services to Post Office. Well, what service has she actually done?”
He added: “She’s caused devastation to a major British institution that was at the heart of communities. She’s ruined thousands of lives over the years. What on earth has she done to deserve that? It should be taken away now!”
Related: Civil service needed ‘culture shock’ to tackle asylum backlog, says ex-minister Robert Jenrick
