The European director of Fujitsu has robustly rejected accusations that his firm is a 'parasite' on the British state, during a tense parliamentary hearing focused on the company's ongoing role in the Post Office Horizon IT scandal.
Paul Patterson, appearing before the Commons Business and Trade Committee, was pressed to commit to a concrete financial redress figure for the victims but declined, stating the company awaited the final report from the public inquiry.
Moral Obligation Acknowledged, But No Financial Commitment
Two years after first admitting Fujitsu had a 'moral obligation' to contribute to financial redress, Patterson reiterated this position. He confirmed the company had known about bugs and errors in the Horizon accounting software since the 1990s.
However, he refused to quantify this obligation or make a provision in the Japanese firm's public accounts. 'The quantum we will decide when we get to the final report,' Patterson told MPs, referring to the inquiry led by Sir Wyn Williams.
The scandal, described as the worst miscarriage of justice in UK history, saw over 1,000 subpostmasters wrongly prosecuted based on faulty data from the Fujitsu-developed system. Sir Wyn's initial findings suggested the ordeal may have contributed to more than 13 suicides.
Defending Millions in Government Contracts
Committee chair Liam Byrne, the Labour MP, accused Fujitsu of 'behaving like a parasite on the British state' for continuing to profit from UK government contracts while victims awaited full compensation.
Patterson strongly contested this characterisation. 'We are not a parasite, chair,' he stated, revealing that Fujitsu's UK government contracts, including one to maintain the ageing Horizon system for the Post Office, are worth approximately £500 million if not terminated early.
He emphasised that Fujitsu had voluntarily paused bidding for new UK public contracts in January 2023, pending the inquiry's conclusion. 'The government has the option of whether it wants to extend those contracts or not,' Patterson said, adding that walking away from current commitments would be 'detrimental' and that extensions were at the government's request.
The Long Road to Redress and Ongoing Inquiry
The government's current estimate for the total cost of Horizon scandal payouts to taxpayers stands at a staggering £1.8 billion. To date, £1.32 billion has been disbursed to more than 10,000 claimants.
Patterson acknowledged Fujitsu's deep involvement, stating the company 'was involved from the very start' and that its employees provided data used in prosecutions and could remotely access Horizon systems.
The final report from Sir Wyn Williams's public inquiry is anticipated later this year. It is this document that Fujitsu says it needs to determine its final financial contribution, leaving victims and MPs waiting for a definitive commitment from the technology giant at the heart of the decades-long injustice.
