Paula Vennells, the former chief executive of the Post Office, has had her CBE formally stripped from her by the King for “bringing the honours system into disrepute”.

Ms Vennells received the honour in 2019 but was widely criticised amid the fallout from the Post Office scandal.

She had previously said she would give up the honour.

Ms Vennells was portrayed by an actor in the ITV drama, Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, which brought the scandal to the wider attention of the public earlier this year.

More than 700 sub-postmasters and mistresses had their reputations ruined by allegations of theft and false accounting, with many left bankrupt or in prison, as a result of a computer system called Horizon.

Between 1999 and 2015, many people who ran branches were found guilty, and despite years of campaigning, only a small number of them had their convictions quashed.

The government has since pledged to exonerate those who were wrongly convicted.

Post Office would stand by prosecution of more than 350 sub-postmasters, boss told minister in letter

Post Office Horizon scandal: The unanswered questions about legislation to overturn wrongful sub-postmaster convictions

Exonerating guilty people ‘price worth paying’ to resolve Post Office scandal, government says

In 2022 a statutory public inquiry began into what has been described as the “worst miscarriage of justice in recent British legal history”, with hearings still under way.

Read more:
Exonerating criminals ‘price worth paying’ – govt
What is the Post Office scandal?
How taking honours away works

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