MPs demand Fujitsu contracts be made public after boss admits staff were aware of bugs in Horizon IT system
20 January 2024, 09:25 | Updated: 20 January 2024, 09:28
MPs have called for Fujitsu contracts to be made public after a company executive admitted staff were aware of bugs in the Horizon IT system.
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The Bank of England, HMRC and the Treasury are among 21 public bodies that have been asked for information on contracts awarded to Fujitsu.
Letters from the Commons Treasury Committee asked for "details of any contracts awarded by your organisation" to the firm since 2019, when the High Court ruled prosecutions based on the company's Horizon IT system at the Post Office were wrongly brought.
The committee asked for a reply within a fortnight.
Since 2012, the public sector has awarded Fujitsu almost 200 contracts worth a total of £6.8 billion, according to analysts Tussell.
Around 43 are still in operation, including the contract for the Post Office Horizon system and multiple government departments such as the Home Office, Foreign Office, Defra and the Ministry of Defence.
Read more: Met to lead nationwide probe into Post Office Horizon Scandal, Commissioner tells LBC
Fujitsu boss ‘sorry’ for firm’s role in Horizon scandal
Harriett Baldwin MP, who chairs the Treasury Committee, said the outcry over the scandal was justified.
"I think it's important we can see the extent to which taxpayer money has been spent with Fujitsu since the High Court ruling as they are simultaneously assessed on their fitness to remain a government supplier," she said.
It comes after Fujitsu boss Paul Patterson told the Horizon inquiry on Thursday that bugs, errors and defects (BEDs) in the IT system were known about by "all parties" and have been known for "many, many years".
In his witness statement, Mr Patterson listed 29 BEDs that were found to exist in the system by a court judgment and explained what they were, when the incidents were raised, what caused them and if or when the issues were closed.
He said the "vast majority" of BEDs were shared with the Post Office contemporaneously.
Fujitsu previously offered its "deepest apologies" to sub-postmasters and their families, confirming that it would contribute to compensation payments to Post Office staff wrongfully convicted.
The company said it will not bid for government contracts while an inquiry into the scandal is ongoing.
