Wrongly jailed postmaster hopeful after receiving treatment for cancer

A former sub-postmaster who was wrongly jailed as a victim of the Post Office Horizon scandal says he is finally looking to to the future after receiving treatment for cancer.

Noel Thomas, from Gaerwen, Anglesey, was sent to prison for nine months in 2006 when his books fell short by £48,000, before successfully appealing against his conviction which was finally overturned in 2021.

He was given a full final compensation payment in December 2024, at a time when he felt his battle for justice was drawing to a close and a new chapter was about to begin.

But, shortly after, he was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in what he has described as a “gruelling” and “rollercoaster” year.

In total more than 900 sub-postmasters were prosecuted after faulty Horizon software flagged discrepancies in accounts at their Post Office branches.

It has been described as the UK’s most widespread miscarriage of justice which led to widespread public anger – and is now the subject of a lengthy inquiry.

For Noel it has taken him 15 years to clear his name and secure a settlement, a process which he said took its toll on him and his family before the start of his health battle.

“It was a bombshell. I feel very well at the moment and cross my fingers every day and thank the Lord I get up in the mornings,” the 79-year-old said.

“He is with me all the way. I am quite happy to be honest now but 2025 was quite a hard year.”

Noel said he was relieved to have “rung that bell” to mark the end of his cancer treatment, even though he is still receiving immunotherapy at Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor.

“The big word cancer came. But, I must say thanks to the Alaw ward at Ysbyty Gwynedd and Glan Clwyd and Wrexham, they have been marvellous and I am still here.”

The Post Office has said it “apologised unreservedly” to Horizon victims.

Even though he secured his settlement, Noel said the scandal would “always be with me and never go away”.

He added he was constantly thinking about other victims who are still waiting for their compensation, and that he was waiting “patiently” for the next report by former high court judge Sir Wyn Williams, who is chairing the Post Office inquiry.

“You can never move on,” Noel said.

“There is more to come. I hope Sir Wyn will hit hard on the people that were involved. I think there should be names and people should be held to account for the injustice they have done.”

Speaking previously, a Post Office spokesperson said: “We apologise unequivocally for the hurt and suffering the Post Office caused to so many people during the Horizon IT Scandal.

“Today, our organisation is focused on working transparently with the ongoing public inquiry, paying full and fair financial redress to those impacted, and establishing a meaningful restorative justice programme, all of which are important elements of the ongoing transformation of Post Office.”

Horizon was a computer system developed by the Japanese company Fujitsu for tasks such as accounting and stocktaking, and was introduced by the Post Office in 1999.

Sub-postmasters quickly complained about bugs in the system after it falsely reported shortfalls, often for many thousands of pounds, but their concerns were dismissed.

Many sub-postmasters went to prison for false accounting and theft, and others were financially ruined.

In 2017, a group of 555 sub-postmasters – led by campaigner Alan Bates, who was subsequently knighted for his contribution – took legal action in a landmark court case against the Post Office.

In 2019, the Post Office agreed to pay the group £58m in compensation, but much of the money went on legal fees.

However, the action paved the way for dozens of sub-postmasters to have their convictions quashed in 2021.

It came to wider public attention at the start of 2024 when it was depicted in an ITV drama, Mr Bates vs The Post Office.