Thousands more tell Post scandal chief to give up CBE as MPs demand action

Nicholas Cecil and Rachael Burford EX-POST Office chief Paula Vennells came under unprecedented pressure today to hand back her CBE over the Horizon computer scandal as the nation reeled in revulsion at the treatment of sub-postmasters and postmistresses wrongly prosecuted for fraud.

- Nicholas Cecil and Rachael Burford

A petition calling for her to be stripped of her honour reached more than 1,050,000 by mid morning ahead of an emergency debate in Parliament on the shocking revelations in what has been described as the biggest miscarriage of justice in British history.

More than 700 branch managers were given criminal convictions after faulty Fujitsu accounting software made it appear as though money was missing from their branches.

The petition took off after ITV aired a harrowing drama about the scandal, Mr Bates vs The Post Office starring Toby Jones. It is believed to have prompted 50 new potential victims to approach lawyers to clear their names and get compensation.

Justice Secretary Alex Chalk and Post Office Minister Kevin Hollinrake, who were meeting today, were being urged to speed up the process for giving justice to the hundreds of victims, many of whom saw their livelihoods destroyed, and in four cases took their own lives.