Now here’s a script worthy of the silver screen: The Horizon scandal has returned to the public consciousness with a vengeance this month, after the smash ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office’ brought up one of Britain’s most notorious injustices.
Politicians are promising swift, restorative justice – just days after the show aired. The appetite to right the wrongs of the past has intensified thanks to the backlash. Who’d have thought it in an election year, eh?
As the government scrambles to save face, a former postmistress affected by the fiasco is taking matters into her own hands. Yvonne Tracey, who worked for the Post Office for more than two decades, has made the decision to run for office in 2024.
And, wouldn’t you just know it, she will be challenging for the Parliamentary seat held by none other than Sir Ed Davey – the former minister for postal affairs. Davey has failed to apologise on multiple occasions this week, after he was grilled about ‘oversights’ in his role.
The 68-year-old, known as ‘Mrs Post Office’ by many, is an independent councillor in the borough of Kingston. On Friday, she registered her ballot, as part of the Kingston Independent Residents Group. She will stand as a ‘one-issue candidate’, representing her postal colleagues.
Speaking to The Times this weekend, Tracey argued that somebody needs to ‘hold Ed Davey to account’:
“Somebody has got to take on the mantle of holding Ed Davey to account and I can’t think of anybody else to do it. It’s very daunting. I don’t want to be a politician long-term. I’m doing this to make a stand for the little people.”
“I don’t want to be an MP but I don’t want Ed Davey to be elected, and if I were selected by the public, I would be honoured and would be motivated do my best. I’ve never been able to stand by idly and say, ‘It’s nothing to do with me’.” | Yvonne Tracey
