00:00 I wish I'd known then what we all know now. The Post Office was lying on an
00:06 industrial scale to me and other ministers and when I met Alan Bates and
00:12 listened to his concerns I put those concerns to officials in my department,
00:16 to the Post Office, to National Federation of Postmasters and it's clear
00:21 they all were lying to me. Why is the first Postal Affairs Minister to meet
00:26 Mr. Bates to listen to him against the advice that I'd received because I was
00:32 concerned by his letter and I listened to him and I took his concerns and I put
00:36 them to officials, I put them to the Post Office and it's clear the Post Office
00:40 lied to the victims, to judges, to the public, to me and other postal ministers
00:48 for over 20 years. This is a conspiracy by the Post Office to deceive people.
00:54 Well I've fully supported the independent inquiry and it needs to get
01:00 the bottom of it. I'm more than happy to give evidence to that inquiry so that
01:05 people are held to account. When you talk to Sir Postmasters, I have a Sir
01:11 Postmaster who was a victim in my own constituency. He was convicted and sent
01:15 to prison for 16 months and it makes me sick in my stomach to think that there
01:21 was that innocent man in prison for all that time and my heart goes out to all
01:26 those people. We need to make sure their convictions are overturned and we need
01:30 to make sure they are fairly compensated and quickly.
