So Post Office's new N-BIT the dust!

I have written about The Post Office's new computer system which would replace the discredited Horizon several times, and the very limited trial at just a few branches.

As recently as October Computer Weekly suggested that with an already massive £1 billion overspend and over-run the plug might be pulled - leaving Horizon in place, and Fujitsu still supporting it.

Now that same journal reports that the system is being abandoned without sufficient care being taken over retention of important data.

According to a source close to the project, the Post Office is ending its Strategic Platform Modernisation Programme (SPMP), which the Horizon replacement project known as New Branch IT (NBIT) sits within, and is letting staff go.

and

Last week, a large group of staff on the SPMP were told they would not be needed beyond Friday 13 December, giving the Post Office about a week to secure the data they hold and ensure it can be accessed in the future. 

The data could be vital for future inquiries into the project, the Post Office and why SPMP spent hundreds of millions of pounds more than it budgeted for but still failed to deliver NBIT. It includes data in emails, messaging apps, working documents and technical information documents. 

The source told Computer Weekly: “Over the next couple of weeks, the SPMP is concluding its decision to let go of contractors and third parties, but without adequately completing a credible data safeguarding activity, the Post Office’s response to the risk is very weak. Something is not right about this.”

Read the full piece here.

And then

A source with inside knowledge of the project said it is now “nearly certain” that a fusion of Horizon, in-house NBIT and off-the-shelf software will replace the current system. This would involve the Post Office buying the Horizon system from Fujitsu rather than renting it as it does now.

This was a previous proposal that had been scrapped, according to the source. “There is nothing new about it and there were reasons why it was rejected in the first place,” they said.

Another source said teams at the Post Office have a “vested interest in Horizon staying around” and that some have been vocal about it. He added that “change is a difficult thing and a lot of people object to it”. 

Second story here. 

This must mean the end - soon or already - of the trial which produced labels such as those at the head of this piece.  Whilst we know that a number of these have been produced by collectors and possibly by dealers, there certainly can't be many.  And for anybody who has collected Horizon labels and wants to continue through to replacement systems, inclusion of these is essential.

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NBIT for the Axe? After spending £millions, Post Office Ltd may outsource latest in-house project.

The much-criticised Capture computer system was developed in-house by Post Office. The Horizon system was developed by ICL/Fujitsu.  The New Branch Information Technology system was being developed in-house, and is running way over budget - and is unlikely to be available for several years, during which Post Office Ltd will have to continue to use Fujitsu to maintain Horizon.

According to Computer Weekly:

As things stand, the Post Office contract with IT supplier Fujitsu to support Horizon ends in March 2025, and if that’s not extended, the consequences could be catastrophic for the branch network. Even Fujitsu is cautious about continuing, and has said it will only do so if convinced the Post Office has a viable replacement plan in place.

The Post Office has asked for a five-year extension, with a three-year break point. The full five years could see up to £180m of additional taxpayer money go to the IT supplier.

According to witnesses at the public inquiry into the Post Office scandal, the two companies have yet to agree a new contract, with less than six months to go.

Former Post Office chief transformation officer Chris Brocklesby told the inquiry that, if everything went according to plan, the earliest the Horizon replacement – dubbed New Branch IT (NBIT) – would begin roll-out is June 2026, with Horizon finally switched off at the end of 2028.

But according to another CW report today 

The “writing is on the wall” for the Post Office’s plan to build its New Branch IT (NBIT) system in-house, as it considers dumping it in favour of an off-the-shelf electronic point of sale (EPOS) alternative.

A source said the Post Office looks set to U-turn on its current plan to replace the controversial Horizon IT system with in-house developed software and either switch to an off-the-shelf system from a supplier or bring Horizon in-house.

The source, who wished to remain anonymous, said the Post Office is considering a contract with EPOS platform provider Escher, the supplier of the Riposte middleware that was previously used in early versions of the Horizon system. There is also support within the Post Office IT department for bringing the existing and controversial Horizon system in-house. The source said a decision has not been made yet, but it appears “the writing is on the wall” for the in-house NBIT software, which is expected to be dumped.

This follows an admission by recently installed Post Office chairman Nigel Railton, during his appearance at the Post Office scandal public inquiry this week, that the company’s decision to build the new system in-house was one of two reasons the project was “set up to fail”.

Railton told the inquiry: “One was the decision ‘to get off Horizon’, which is different to building a system for the future, and the second was the decision to build in-house.” He said there are many “horror stories” of people trying to build systems in-house, adding: “I think, based on my experience, that this was always set up to fail in the first place.”

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A recent internal Post Office document sent to staff by acting CEO Neil Brocklehurst revealed that changes to the NBIT programme are being considered. “While the strategic review is ongoing, and informed by other discussions with the board and stakeholders, we have taken the opportunity to review our current approach to our delivery of new technology, to make sure it will deliver what postmasters need in the most effective way possible,” it said.

“This means from next week we will start reassessing and reprioritising the NBIT programme. This does not mean we will be stopping everything. Critical investment in Horizon’s infrastructure will continue and, importantly, we will be moving forward with the installation of new technology into branches over the next 12 months,” the document said.

According to the source, the NBIT team has been told to hold off building any more features until a decision is made on whether to continue with the current in-house project.

Watch this space or follow Computer Weekly.

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Did pre-Horizon system Capture wrong data, bankrupting postmasters? Fujitsu CEO slaps down POL over new cases.

I know this isn't on the list in my previous post but it's timely and brings attention back to the Post Office Ltd failings, and the unchanged culture.

Two reports, one about the computer system used at PO branches before Horizon was introduced, and the other about Fujitsu's reaction to POL asking for a witness statement and evidence this year for a further prosecution.  A third report covers continuing waste on NBIT, delays to which mean that Horizon will keep being used.

Report 1

In the week after Sir Alan Bates received his knighthood at Windsor Castle, Computer Weekly reveals failings similar to those in the Horizon case with its predecessor, Capture.  Capture was a PC-based accounting system, referred to as 'a glorified spreadsheet'.  There was no centralisation of data, and as with Horizon, too little training if any.

Here's the Computer Weekly article by Karl Flinders (links are to CW and WhatDoTheyKnow websites).

Post Office dramatically increased the number of investigations into subpostmasters after Capture Software was introduced

A change in Post Office behaviour after it introduced software to computerise branch accounts in 1993 mirrors an increase in prosecutions six years later, when the controversial Horizon system was introduced.

Lives were destroyed as the Post Office blamed subpostmasters for unexplained accounting shortfalls that only existed on the error-prone Horizon accounting system used in branches. Former users of Horizon predecessor, Capture, have been campaigning since January when ITV’s dramatisation of the Post Office scandal revealed parallels to problems they experienced.

Data on Post Office prosecutions has revealed worrying similarities to how the Post Office treated Horizon and Capture users who suffered unexplained losses.

According to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, in the six years before Capture was introduced by the Post Office to automate manual processes, fewer than five subpostmasters were investigated over account shortfalls in four of the years, seven investigations were carried out in 1992, and 11 investigations took place in 1993. But in the following six years, the number of investigations increased dramatically to an average of 191 a year, reaching 378 in 1998.

This mirrors a dramatic change that followed the introduction of the Horizon system to branches in 1999, in relation to the number of subpostmasters convicted of financial crimes. According to a separate FOI request from 2020, in the seven years between 1991 and the year before Horizon’s introduction, an average of six subpostmasters were convicted per year, compared with an average of 52 a year in the 13 years following its introduction, until the Post Office stopped prosecuting in 2013.

After Capture was introduced, prosecutions increased, but to a much smaller extent than investigations. However, the Post Office contract meant subpostmasters who had unexplained shortfalls, which the investigations typically related to, had to cover those shortfalls with their own money or face the termination of their contracts or prosecution.

The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.

Horizon is a large, complex, networked system connected to centralised services with links to Post Office systems, which all subpostmasters have to use. In contrast, the Capture system was a PC-based application developed by the Post Office and uploaded to a personal computer by subpostmasters to carry out their accounts. The software – referred to by some users as a “glorified spreadsheet” – was a standalone system, which was used by more than 1,500 subpostmasters.

Computer Weekly reported in January that former users of the software had come forward claiming they had been prosecuted for unexplained shortfalls. Former MP Kevan Jones, who now sits in the House of Lords, was involved in the campaign for justice for Horizon victims and has spearheaded a campaign for subpostmasters who believe they suffered losses and criminal prosecution as a result of Capture errors.

After pressure, the government commissioned an investigation of Capture to be carried out by forensic specialists Kroll. This report is now in the hands of the government and its publication is expected soon.

Neil Hudgell, a solicitor at Hudgell Solicitors, which has about 40 former Capture users as clients, said he is confident that the content of the report will be supportive of his clients’ claims.

Steve Marston was prosecuted in 1996 for theft and false accounting following an unexplained shortfall of nearly £80,000 in his branch in Bury, Lancashire. He said he had never had any problems using the paper-based accounting system. This changed when his branch, which he ran from 1973, began using Capture.

He covered the losses with his own money, but it kept getting worse. After an audit revealed a loss he couldn’t fully cover out of his own pocket, he was advised to plead guilty to theft and fraud to avoid jail. The judge took into account two bravery awards Marston had received for standing up to armed robbers, saving him a jail sentence. He was given a 12-month suspended sentence, lost his home and business, and went bankrupt.

Marston said the stats in the latest FOI response provide a damning indictment of the effects that the introduction of Capture had. “Are we really expected to believe that, all of a sudden, honest and hard-working postmasters who have substantial amounts of money invested in their businesses have all gone rogue at the same time?

“Surely someone at the Post Office should have seen that the numbers [of investigations] literally exploded after the introduction of Capture, which we know to be unfit for purpose and, in my opinion, should never have been made public.”

Marston, who will meet the government next week to discuss the Capture controversy, said he hopes to get justice. The government is expected to publish the Kroll report on Capture soon.

In June, Computer Weekly revealed another similarity between Capture and Horizon in terms of inadequate training. Subpostmasters used pre-Horizon Capture software without any training from the Post Office, a failing that mirrors one of the causes of the Post Office Horizon scandal. Despite a Post Office document from 1995 outlining the training users received, former subpostmasters, who encountered serious problems with Capture, have come forward revealing they had no training. One of the major problems with the controversial Horizon system was the lack of adequate training on using the system.

Computer Weekly has contacted the Post Office for comment.

The Post Office scandal was first exposed by Computer Weekly in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.

 

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Report 2

The Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry resumed while we were away: I'm not going to have time to comment on what I haven't even started to watch/listen to, but this report from Mark Sweney of The Guardian shows that, whilst PO CEO Nick Read thinks he has changed the business structure, he really doesn't understand at all.

Post Office asked to use Horizon IT data to support criminal case this year, inquiry hears

The Post Office attempted to use Horizon IT data to support a criminal case against a post office owner earlier this year, despite hundreds of post office operators being wrongfully prosecuted for theft, fraud and false accounting because of bugs in the system.

A chain of email correspondence between the Post Office and the Horizon developer, Fujitsu, relating to a police investigation into a potential criminal case involving a “large sum of money” against a sub-post office operator was shown at the public inquiry into the scandal on Tuesday.

An email was sent by John Bartlett, the head of investigations at the Post Office, to Fujitsu describing the Post Office as the “potential victim” and asking for the software company to provide a witness statement to the police or the case would not be able to progress.

The issue was rapidly escalated to Paul Patterson, the chief executive of Fujitsu Europe, who wrote directly to the Post Office chief executive, Nick Read.

“I am writing to you directly in order to raise serious concerns that have come to my attention which indicate the Post Office continues to pursue enforcement against postmasters and expects Fujitsu to support such actions,” he said in an email in May.

“We are concerned by the behaviour of the Post Office investigation team on this matter. That team maintains the approach of the Post Office as a ‘victim’ and requires Fujitsu to provide a witness statement as to the reliability of Horizon data stating that without such statement the case will not progress. For the investigations team to act in this manner seems to disregard the serious criticism raised in multiple judicial findings and indeed exhibits a lack of respect to the ongoing inquiry.”

Read responded by saying that there had been a “fundamental misunderstanding” at Fujitsu about the “Post Office’s current day culture and activities”.

He said that the Post Office was not continuing its pursuit of post office operators in private prosecutions – “including providing supporting data from the Horizon system” for cases – and that it was to help a potential police investigation.

Patterson responded saying that he considered the request to be “entirely inappropriate”, adding that the Post Office is “well aware there have been and there continue to be bugs, errors and defects in the Horizon system”.

“It seems clear that the Post Office continues to have significant cultural issues,” he said. “[It] sees itself as a ‘victim’ with the enforcement and prosecution of postmasters considered as a business as usual activity. Fujitsu finds the language and the suggested behaviour unacceptable from Post Office investigators.”

Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office relentlessly pursued and wrongfully prosecuted more than 700 operators using faulty Horizon IT data.

The email request to Fujitsu came after ITV aired Mr Bates vs the Post Office, which brought the plight of the post office operators and use of the flawed data in legal actions to national attention.

UPDATE 2 October - REPORT 3 

Post Office spending £80,000+ a week on engineers who can’t work, as IT project burns cash

In another Karl Flinders Computer Weekly report, it turns out that Horizon replacement NBIT isn't doing so well either.

The Post Office has been paying more than £80,000 per week for contracted IT engineers to sit idle due to major delays in rolling out hardware for its New Business IT (NBIT) project.

In yet another example of taxpayers’ money being wasted, as the Post Office tries to rid itself of the system at the centre of a scandal, Computer Weekly can reveal that £1.6m could be spent on IT staff who are unable to do work they were contracted to do. This is as a result of issues with power supply units that can’t be used in the project to replace the controversial Horizon system. The NBIT project has already gone from a costing of £180m to £1bn.*

The latest waste was revealed as the Post Office scandal public inquiry was told by two former Post Office executives – chairman Henry Staunton and chief financial officer (CFO) Alisdair Cameron – this week that the NBIT project lacks governance.

According to an internal Post Office NBIT progress update, under the heading “high level issues”, tech engineers from IT supplier DXC, who were contracted in mid-June, have no work to do due to the issues with power supply units. The engineers will have to wait 16 to 20 weeks before replacement units are available, allowing them to complete the work they were contracted to do.

(* My emphasis)

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New Counter Information Technology label trial comes to Croydon.

The Post Office in Croydon High Street is now producing the New Counter IT (post-Horizon) postage labels.  

I have no more details (ie whether it is one counter position or all, or how easy it is to get these) but my correspondent  WU sent a 2nd class large letter along with the receipt on 7 August 2024, which may have been the first day.   

New Counter Information Technology postage label from Croydon PO 7 August 2024.

Cash Receipt for the above label,

There's no information about these from official Royal Mail sources - save that the designs etc have been worked out between Royal Mail and Post Office Ltd. 

Please let me know if you see any from sources other than Aldwych (FAD - or branch code 0090107), Leeds St Johns (039323), or Croydon (0240133).  Many thanks.

Update 15 August.  

1. A report from Croydon. PA reports that, on 5 July, Croydon PO initially denied that it was there and wouldn't be for two years!   He eventually obtained just one label. "A large letter copy was refused as it would be overcharging me and she would get into trouble. (Large letters at under 100g cannot be handled by NBIT).   NBIT is very restricted and it can handle very little at present. It cannot handle Tracked, standard Certificates of Posting, banking transactions etc."  (I suspect NBIT stands for New Branch IT, rather than New Counter IT - IB).

2.  Five branches in trial. Thanks to AY who has pointed out a not-entirely unrelated article on the BBC website, which I had only partly read.  Referring to the departure of Post Office Ltd's IT chief it cites delays and cost escalation on the replacement for the Horizon system.

The key point for the purposes of this post, though, states: "pilots for the new system were currently working in five branches, and it has requested cash from the Department for Business and Trade to fund the project to replace it.  Post Office and the Department for Business and Trade are working on this request and as and when an agreement is reached, we will inform our Postmasters,"

If this is, indeed, the same thing it has a long way to go.  Although postage labels are important, they are only part of the requirement.  An accurate accounting system which properly interfaces with third parties (banks, utilities, Lotto, etc) and actually produces a balancing double-entry system with no system-generated errors or omissions, is really important.

Update 20 August

My thanks to AB who has visited Aldwych at a quiet time, and was able to discuss the trial.

"They did confirm there are five locations for the trial - Aldwych, Croydon and St John’s, Leeds as we know, but also ‘Springburn, Scotland’ which I’ve taken to be Springburn Shopping Centre, Glasgow and Melville Rd, Hove  BN3 1UB. 

"The system is indeed slow, as others have said! Services limited to 1st/2nd Large Letter and Signed For as well as Special Delivery (forgot to ask if ‘by 9’ and ‘Sat Guaranteed’). Definitely no international services, and not the new Tracked 24 and 48. 

"I also asked how the trial was going: no info on that! No news on if this will be the final design of labels.

"They referred to the new system as ‘n-bit’ rather than ‘en bee eye tee’."

So if anybody in Hove or Glasgow has a lot of patience and wants to try out the new system, we'll be pleased to report the results.  Thanks!

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Post Horizon System Postage Labels

Three years ago Gareth Clark, Post Office Ltd's Strategic Platform Modernisation Director wrote about the way forward for the Horizon system, both in the wake of the Post Office Scandal and the fact that it was beyond aging and still creaking and bug-prone (although this was not mentioned at the time).  (Unfortunately the link to the original article is no longer accessible but it is in the Wayback Archive.)

From that earlier article, the "planned timelines for rolling out the new system are:

• Late 2021: A pilot and very small version of the new system will be tested in selected new branches
• 2022 and 2023: We will run pilots in branches to test the new system with different product groups and to understand how it works, ensuring we design and build with postmasters, for postmasters
• 2023 to 2025: The new system will start to become available to branches, ultimately replacing the current system in its entirety."
  

I've not heard anything about development of a new system since then: the media and Computer Weekly have rightly been concentrating on the effects of the old system and delving into its predecessor, Capture.

So it is with some surprise that I found some examples of output from a new system in my inbox last week, including payment labels from a live trial which was taking place on one counter position at Aldwych Post Office six weeks ago.

Aldwych trial Post Horizon postage label Special Delivery by 9am 12/02/24

Aldwych trial Post Horizon postage label Special Delivery by 1pm 12/02/24

Aldwych trial Post Horizon postage label 2nd class Large Letter 12/02/24

Aldwych trial Post Horizon postage label 2nd class Signed For Large Letter 12/02/24

As you can see this last one has evidence of processing through Mount Pleasant Mail Centre and the Track & Trace webpage shows evidence of deliveries, the first being the 9am, and the second showing the other three items.

Collaboration with Royal Mail

Although the computer system is a Post Office Ltd project the postage system must at least be approved by Royal Mail and I shall be making enquiries about this.  The original discredited Horizon system was developed when POL and Royal Mail were still part of the same organisation and so when the, first white and then pictorial, labels were introduced they were a Royal Mail product.  

As can be seen, these are back to a plain white label, with the King's head and service indicator at the lower right being printed at the same time as all the other detail.  

I don't know whether this is a temporary arrangement for the trial, or if Royal Mail have decided that printing the very many double ended labels is an unnecessary expense and that these will suffice - after all a lot of postage - even generated by Royal Mail systems - does not show the monarch's head (Click and Drop, Tracked24/48 etc.)

Although it is acknowledged that the Horizon system needs to be changed, it is obvious that even an in-house system designed to serve "11,500 branches, outreaches and mobile vans" and the call centre will take many years and cost a great deal of money.  

If anybody visits Aldwych I would be delighted to receive a sample letter, and if anybody hears anything about extension of the trial or changes please let me know.
 

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