In a year marked by both triumphs and frustrations, one name has become synonymous with the relentless pursuit of justice: Alan Bates. This tenacious 69-year-old has spent the last two decades campaigning tirelessly on behalf of hundreds of subpostmasters wrongfully accused and convicted of theft and false accounting due to flaws in the Post Office’s Horizon computer system. Thanks to Bates’ unwavering dedication, this scandal – the biggest miscarriage of justice in British history – has finally been exposed, but the battle for fair compensation continues.
The Subpostmaster Who Refused to Back Down
Alan Bates’ own post office nightmare began in 1998 when he and his partner Suzanne invested their savings into a branch in Llandudno. Within weeks of the Horizon system’s introduction, Bates noticed discrepancies – his accounts were thousands of pounds short. Refusing to make up the difference from his own pocket, he challenged the Post Office, only to have his contract terminated in 2003 for being “unmanageable.”
Undeterred, Bates launched a “Post Office Victims” website and began connecting with other affected subpostmasters. As more stories of financial ruin, criminal convictions, and shattered lives emerged, Bates knew he had to keep fighting. For 20 years, he dedicated himself to the cause, even as the Post Office labeled him a troublemaker.
Exposing a Scandal, One Court Battle at a Time
Bates’ campaign gained momentum as he brought together hundreds of subpostmasters to take legal action. In 2019, the High Court ruled that the Horizon system was indeed flawed, paving the way for convictions to be overturned. The full extent of the scandal came to light:
- Over 900 wrongful convictions for theft, fraud, and false accounting
- Hundreds jailed, financially ruined, and driven to despair or suicide
- Post Office spent over £100 million fighting legal challenges
- Government launches inquiry, CEO Paula Vennells stripped of CBE
Throughout it all, Bates remained the driving force, coordinating legal efforts, supporting victims, and keeping the pressure on the Post Office and government.
Recognition and Redress: A Knighthood and a Caribbean Wedding
In 2024, Bates’ efforts were recognized with a knighthood for services to justice. He accepted on behalf of all victims, many of whom are still awaiting proper compensation. In a fairy-tale twist, Bates married Suzanne in a surprise wedding on Richard Branson’s Necker Island. After years of hardship, the couple finally had a moment of joy, though Bates admits Suzanne had been dropping hints since he became “Sir Alan.”
I’d like to know what we would have done otherwise. I think we would have grown strong together, but I don’t think we would have been public.
– Suzanne Bates
The £1.8 Billion Question: Will Victims Finally See Justice?
In the latest budget, the government earmarked £1.8 billion for Horizon scandal victims. Bates has given them until the end of the year to sort out the compensation claims. Even so, he acknowledges that no amount of money can make up for the lives ruined and lost. The Post Office, he argues, had become “thugs in suits” who “don’t give a stuff” about those they harmed in the name of protecting their bottom line.
As 2024 draws to a close, Alan Bates remains committed to seeing justice served. For him, success will come when every victim is fairly compensated and the Post Office is held fully accountable. Only then will he and Suzanne feel they can truly celebrate and honor those lost along the way. Until that day, this unlikely hero will keep fighting the good fight, knowing the whole nation is behind him.
