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Former Post Office CIO Lesley Sewell said she knew of a Horizon bug by 2011, disagreed with describing bugs as “exceptions” or “anomalies,” and nevertheless went along with communications directions. A Computer Weekly report on her 2024 inquiry evidence also describes a shift in the Post Office’s public wording in May 2013, from saying there was no evidence of a technology fault to acknowledging that bugs existed and were fixed. That account does not, by itself, establish Sewell’s motive or legal responsibility.
Who was Lesley Sewell?
Sewell joined the Post Office in 2010 and served as its chief information officer from 2012 to 2015. At the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, she agreed with counsel Emma Price that people in the organisation knew about software bugs as early as 2006. Sewell said she knew of one by 2011, according to Karl Flinders’s account of the hearing in Computer Weekly, published 16 May 2024.
The report is a secondary account of her testimony. It does not establish the full context of the evidence or the inquiry’s overall findings.
What did the Post Office say publicly about Horizon?
The Post Office repeatedly described Horizon as robust, said there was no evidence pointing to a technology fault, and said it would investigate concerns raised by subpostmasters. The organisation’s quoted statement said: “Horizon is an extremely robust system which operates over our entire Post Office network and successfully records millions of transactions each day. There is no evidence that points to any fault with the technology. We would always look into and investigate any issues raised by subpostmasters.” The claim about millions of daily transactions is part of the Post Office’s statement, not an independently verified figure in the report.
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According to Computer Weekly, this was the stock response until May 2013, shortly before an independent report by forensic accountants Second Sight was expected to reveal Horizon bugs.
How did the wording change in May 2013?
Computer Weekly describes a May 2013 email from Post Office secretary Alwen Lyons to senior executives, including chief executive Paula Vennells, general counsel Susan Crichton and communications director Mark Davies. The email showed a move away from saying there were no bugs. The revised wording acknowledged that bugs were known to occur in computer systems of Horizon’s size, said they were found and fixed, and asserted that no subpostmaster had been disadvantaged.
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Sewell reportedly said of reading the email: “When I read this email I couldn’t understand it.” The report’s account does not independently establish how the revised wording was drafted, approved or used beyond the email described.
What did Sewell say about calling bugs “anomalies”?
Sewell said she would not, as an IT professional, claim that any computer system had no bugs. Asked how the public position could say there were no bugs, she reportedly told the inquiry: “I don’t know the answer to that because from my perspective as an IT professional, I would never say there are no bugs in any system, because you do have faults in computer systems and it’s important how you deal with them.”
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She said she went along with communications directions to use terms such as “exceptions” or “anomalies,” although she disagreed with that terminology. Computer Weekly reports that she described the choice as “mad” and said: “They were faults and I wouldn’t class them as anomalies, but it changed how we had to communicate about bugs.” These are her reported views about the language; they do not alone establish what other officials intended or understood.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does the account establish—and what does it not?
The report presents a contrast between an categorical public assurance that there was no evidence of a technology fault and Sewell’s account of known bugs and her professional view that systems can have faults. It also reports that she followed a communications direction despite disagreeing with how bugs were described. Those points explain why the testimony drew scrutiny.
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But “failed to raise concern” should be read precisely. The reported evidence supports that Sewell did not understand the categorical public position, objected to the terminology, and went along with the direction. The Computer Weekly article alone does not establish her full actions in every relevant discussion, her motives, legal culpability, or the inquiry’s final assessment. It also reports that Sewell said: “I feel so bad for the subpostmasters.”
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