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Post Office Minister Gareth Thomas addressed Parliament on Tuesday after the report's release, where he recognised the "bravery" of the postmasters who have fought to be heard.

Thomas suggested that he is "very sympathetic" to the 19 recommendations, and that the government would "respond to them promptly" - promising to meet the 10 October deadline.

He went on to confirm that the government would make changes to compensation rules and provide redress for family members of sub-postmasters who suffered due to the scandal.

The minister explained this will "be open to close family members of existing Horizon claimants who themselves suffered personal injury – including psychological distress – because of their relative’s suffering".

Before we hear from the group of sub-postmasters on BBC Breakfast, another has described the anguish of becoming bankrupt because of the scandal.

Leanne Young ran a branch in St Philips Marsh, Bristol, between 2006 and 2009.

In the clip below, she explains how she and her parents had to sell their homes to pay off her debt after she was falsely prosecuted.

• As a reminder: Many sub-postmasters were forced to pay back the money they were wrongly accused of stealing from the Post Office, when the faulty Horizon IT software showed shortfalls. These amounts were often in the tens of thousands of pounds. Some victims had to use their life savings, others claimed bankruptcy
• Read more about Leanne Young's story

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Many strong reactions came in yesterday after the first inquiry report was released.

Speaking to the BBC, Seema Misra said she feels "mixed emotions". Misra was jailed in 2010 while pregnant after being accused of stealing £74,000 from her Post Office branch.

"I feel heartbroken, angry - and happy, too, that it's finally here." But, she does not "accept their [Post Office] apologies at all. Go behind bars and then I'll think."

Kathy McAlerney was a sub-postmistress in Leitrim, in Northern Ireland. She was pursued for years to pay back money that she was falsely accused of taking and had her contract terminated when she was eight months pregnant.

She said "it's exhausting" pursuing compensation and hopes the report will make a difference so they can move on.

Tuesday's report is huge because it lays bare "the full scale of the horror that they unleashed on us" former sub-postmistress Jo Hamilton said.

The government is now under pressure to "get a grip on redress", she added.

The inquiry began in 2022, with the aim of providing a clear account of the failings of the faulty Horizon IT data system used by the Post Office during the scandal.

It started by hearing evidence from Fujitsu, the Japanese company that operated the software, and Post Office employees.

The inquiry's Chair, Sir Wyn Williams, published his first report yesterday, which looks into the impact on victims and the issues of compensation.

More reports will follow.

Inquiries make recommendations and establish lessons learned in the past, but don't have the power to force any legal action.

This first report makes a series of urgent recommendations, including:

• Free legal advice for claimants
• Compensation payments for close family members of those affected
• A programme of restorative justice with Fujitsu, the Post Office and the government meeting individual victims directly

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In January last year, shortly after the ITV programme on Alan Bates's successful campaign was released, a group of former sub-postmasters and mistresses shared their stories on BBC Breakfast's red sofa.

Their stories are powerful, and the hurt they and their families have experienced is palpable.

You can watch what they had to say below - many of them will be joining our colleagues in Salford again shortly.

Tom Espiner
Business reporter

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1. The impact on lives was 'disastrous'

The report says that more than 13 people who were falsely accused of theft and false accounting may have taken their own lives due to the scandal.

Apart from this, at least 59 people told the inquiry they had contemplated suicide at various points, of whom 10 attempted to take their own lives.

The report describes the impact on those affected as "disastrous", and says it was not easy to "exaggerate the trauma" that people went through being investigated and prosecuted.

• If you have been affected by the issues in this story the BBC Action Line features a list of organisations which are ready to provide support and advice.

2. Post Office knew its IT system had errors

The report says that senior and not so senior people in the Post Office "knew, or at the very least should have known, that legacy Horizon was capable of error" – legacy Horizon was the version in use until 2010.

Despite this, the report says the Post Office "maintained the fiction that its data was always accurate".

3. Post Office and Fujitsu behaved unacceptably

Many hundreds of people were wrongly convicted of criminal offences, and thousands were held responsible for losses that were illusory, the report says.

These people were victims of "wholly unacceptable behaviour" by individuals employed or associated with the Post Office and Fujitsu, and from time to time by the organisations themselves, Sir Wyn, the inquiry's Chair says.

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4. Post Office was too adversarial on compensation

Sir Wyn says three of the compensation schemes offered to victims have been "bedevilled with unjustifiable delays" and redress has not been delivered promptly.

He adds that the Post Office's legal teams have been too adversarial in making offers for compensation.

As a result, he suggests three recommendations on compensation, including free legal advice for claimants.

5. Post Office and Fujitsu told to meet victims

The report suggests that by 31 October this year, the government, Fujitsu and the Post Office should publish plans to meet victims for a programme of restorative justice.

Imogen James
Live reporter

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Welcome back to our live coverage of the fallout from the inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal.

Yesterday, a report revealed the enormous amount of pain and suffering that hundreds of wrongly prosecuted sub-postmasters went through from 1999-2015.

This morning, we will hear from some of them.

The first report of the official inquiry focused on the human impact and issues over compensation.

One of the most distressing revelations was that the scandal may have led to 13 suicides, with a further 10 people attempting to take their own lives.

The report also detailed how many sub-postmasters and their families suffered local community abuse, mental and physical distress, financial ruin and alcoholism.

The Post Office apologised "unreservedly", but for some this may not be enough.

This morning, BBC Breakfast is giving a voice to 10 victims of the scandal from 08:30 - watch it live on this page.

Emily Atkinson
Live editor, at the inquiry

More than 20 years have passed since sub-postmasters first challenged the Post Office over unexplained losses appearing in their branch accounts, seemingly from nowhere.

The Horizon IT system, developed by Japanese tech firm Fujitsu, had been rolled out by the Post Office not long before - a system now understood to be capable of forging illusory losses.

Today, it was acknowledged by a statutory inquiry that it was known by the Post Office and Fujitsu that the system was faulty - but they "maintained the fiction that its data was always accurate" when prosecuting sub-postmasters.

Much of today's report was dedicated to the impact of the scandal on its victims. It's believed around 1,000 were prosecuted and convicted, and thousands more suspended or sacked.

The details are extremely distressing. Many endured abuse in their local communities, subjected themselves to self-harm, suffered psychological harm, lost their homes, suffered financial, physical and mental distress, and turned to alcoholism.

The scandal may have also led to 13 suicides - six sub-postmasters and seven more people. At least 59 more contemplated taking their own lives, the report said.

We're decades on and still many are waiting for compensation. Jailed sub-postmaster Seema Misra told me she's hopeful the report will expedite redress. Others aren't so sure - Sami Sabet, speaking to my colleague Tom, fears further delay.

What's left now is the monumental task of working out who's to blame - but that could be years away.

For many victims, justice still feels a long way off.

• We are now bringing our live page to an end. If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in our coverage, support and advice is available via the BBC Action Line

Emily Atkinson
Live editor, at the inquiry

I just caught up with Seema Misra, who spoke to our colleagues on the news channel earlier today.

A reminder, Seema, now 50, was jailed while pregnant after being accused of stealing £74,000 from her Post Office branch. She was sent to prison on the day of her eldest son's 10th birthday.

"I've got mixed emotions," she says, reflecting on the publication of the report today. "I feel heartbroken, angry - and happy, too, that it's finally here."

There are several recommendations in the report on financial redress, which it described as having been “bedevilled with unjustifiable delays”.

Seema says she's hopeful the awarding of compensation will speed up as a result.

"When we started the fight... we didn't think it would take this long, at all. Hopefully now the government will listen and implement sooner rather than later," she said.

Earlier today, the Post Office issued an "unreserved" apology for "a shameful period in our history" - I asked Seema what she made of that.

"I don't accept it," Seema says. "I don't accept their apologies at all. Go behind bars and then I'll think about it."

Tom Espiner
Business reporter, at the inquiry

Sami Sabet was a successful businessman before deciding to leave the rat race and become a sub-postmaster for three post offices in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex.

When he recognised shortfalls in his Post Office accounts in 2006, he contacted the Horizon help-desk and spoke to regional managers about his problems, but in common with many other sub-postmasters, he was prosecuted.

Sami ended up pleading guilty to fraud in 2009 to avoid prison.

Instead, he received a suspended sentence and suffered a lot of reputational damage including being shunned in the street.

Even after his conviction was quashed in 2021, some of his neighbours still see him as a criminal.

Sami says that although Sir Wyn Wiliams’s recommendations for compensation for more people are fair, there is a danger that could push compensation for him back even further.

Sami was awarded compensation for intangible damages, such as the negative effects on his health, but he is still waiting for compensation for the loss of his money and businesses.

He claims that stress has “shortened my life considerably”.

He says he suffered a heart attack and during open heart surgery lost some of his peripheral vision.

He says that he suffered from depression, anxiety and panic attacks, adding that his personality changed – he became aggressive if he thought people weren’t listening to him or taking him seriously.

Let's move away from the Commons now and bring you some more reaction to today's report.

We've been hearing from two sub-postmasters after the report's publication - you may find some of the details they share distressing.

Seema Misra was eight weeks pregnant when she was sentenced to 15 months in prison after being wrongly convicted of stealing from her West Byfleet Post Office branch.

Janet Skinner was given a nine-month sentence in 2007 over an alleged shortfall of £59,000 from her Bransholme Post Office branch.

• If you are affected by any of the issues raised in our coverage, support and advice is available via the BBC Action Line

Responding to the government's statement, shadow business and trade minister Harriett Baldwin asks whether all 19 recommendations will be accepted in the report by the 10 October deadline.

She says Fujitsu, which operated the faulty Horizon systems, is still receiving government contracts and asks how those responsible will be held to account.

She also asks what the government is doing to speed up the process for the outstanding claims from sub-postmasters.

Post Office minister Gareth Thomas says that the government is "determined" to meet that October deadline, which he says in important to do so to prevent any delays to compensation claims.

He says sub-postmasters have had the opportunity to apply and accept a fixed sum of £75,000 in the Horizons Shortfall Scheme, as well as an appeals process for those who feel they have not been given a fair offer, but there are challenges because there are currently more cases than they have evidence for.

The government has announced that some family members of the victims of the Horizon scandal will be eligible for compensation.

Gareth Thomas says the scheme will be open to "close family members of existing Horizon claimants who themselves suffered personal injury - including psychological distress - because of their relative's suffering".

He says there will be a process for "providing financial redress to close family members of those most adversely affected by Horizon", as set out in today's report.

"Sir Wyn rightly recognises that designing a suitable compensation scheme for family members raises some very difficult issues. Nonetheless, we want to look after those family members who suffered most," he says.

Thomas says the current government inherited a compensation process that was "widely" seen as being "too slow, adversarial" and "legalistic".

He says that four years after the first High Court case exposed the Post Office scandal, "only 2,500" sub-postmasters have had final settlements and that there were "significant gaps" in the compensation process.

Thomas adds that there was no compensation scheme in place for sub-postmasters whose convictions had been overturned by parliament but that one has since been launched.

An independent process to appeal settlements or offers has been launched and discussions with Fujitsu - which developed the Horizon IT system - have begun over the company's contribution to the costs of the scandal, he adds.

We're now hearing a statement from the government on the Post Office Horizon report.

Post Office minister Gareth Thomas pays tribute to the bravery of the sub-postmasters, saying that being falsely accused of false accounting and theft led to them being "stressed beyond belief".

He acknowledges the human impact it had on the victims outlined in the report, with some suffering from mental health issues, losing their marriages, and in some cases, losing their lives.

The government will respond to the recommendations promptly, he says, adding that they will meet the deadline of 10 October given by Sir Wyn Williams, chair of the inquiry and author of the report.

Emily Atkinson
Live editor, at the inquiry

I’ve been speaking to Kathy McAlerney, who's here with her husband, Patrick.

Kathy was a sub-postmaster in a small branch in the village of Leitrim, in Northern Ireland. Like others, unexplained shortfalls began appearing on her Horizon account.

Following an audit by the Post Office in 2007, she was suspended “on the spot” and “pursued for years” to pay back the money back. Under the terms of her contract, she was liable to cover the losses.

A year later, her contract was terminated. She was eight months pregnant with her fourth daughter at the time.

Her daughter is now 18-years-old - and Kathy is still awaiting compensation.

Reacting to the publication of the report, she says she “really hopes it will make a difference”.

“We’ve been waiting decades now. And we really just want to get to the point where we can put this behind us and move on with our lives.

“We are getting tired, you know. It’s exhausting."

Tom Beal
BBC Investigations journalist, at the inquiry

The costs paid to legal firms by the government and Post Office for delivering the four Post Office Horizon redress schemes are included in the inquiry report.

For its work on the Horizon Shortfall Scheme, the law firm Herbert Smith Freehills has been paid £67m by the Post Office up to 2 December 2024. The company has received a further £15m for its work on the Overturned Conviction Scheme.

There are also payments made by the Department of Business and Trade to its lawyers Addleshaw Goddard (£4.7m) and Dentons (£1.8m) for the Group Litigation Scheme legal costs. For the Horizon Conviction Redress Scheme, Addleshaw Goddard has been paid £152,000 up to the end of April this year.

Newly published government figures show the total legal costs paid for the “operational delivery of Horizon redress schemes” have risen to £100m.

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If you're just joining us this afternoon, the first part of the Post Office Horizon report has been published, laying out the human impact the scandal has had on victims.

There's been a lot to digest - some 162 pages - and there's been plenty of reaction to it. Here's a recap of what's happened so far today.

• The report found that 13 people, including six former sub-postmasters, had taken their own lives, with at least 59 people having "contemplated suicide at various points in time" due to Horizon and/or the Post Office
• Around 1,000 Post Office staff were prosecuted, with only 50-60 not convicted
• Former sub-postmaster Seema Misra, who was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to 15 months in prison while pregnant, says the report is "thoughtful" and that those who are accountable should go "behind bars"
• The Post Office apologised "unreservedly" for the suffering caused, describing it as a "shameful period" in its history.
• Report author Sir Wyn Williams says "large portions" of claims continue to be "difficult to resolve", with ""egregious delays" at almost every stage

We'll be bringing you further reaction to the report from victims, and a statement from the House of Commons shortly. Stay with us for the latest.

We can now bring you more from the chair's speech.

Sir Wyn Williams says he's "critical" of the Post Office and the government for the "development and evolution" of the compensation schemes for the victims, adding that there should not have been "four distinct and separate schemes for delivering financial redress".

He says even if his recommendations in today's report are "accepted and implemented as quickly as I would like, they will not constitute some magic formula for removing all of the problems from which the schemes suffer".

A glimpse at what's to come on responsibility for scandal?published at 13:28 British Summer Time 8 July

13:28 BST 8 July

Emma Simpson
Business correspondent, at the inquiry

Image source, Getty Images

This report lays bare what sub-postmasters have been through.

It’s the sheer scale of the havoc wreaked by a state owned institution who continued to deny for years that Horizon was to blame for the losses.

We now know that 59 contemplated suicide and 13 took their own lives.

The rest of it is devoted to the painful issue of compensation. Wyn Williams goes into great detail about all the issues across the various schemes and the “formidable difficulties” and delays for the victims in getting full and fair redress.

He’s proposing some sweeping reforms on the process of delivering redress.

But right at the start of the 160-page report, he says he's satisfied that senior employees, and not so senior employees, of the Post Office knew or at the very least should have known Horizon was capable of producing errors, despite some of the individuals being “very reluctant” to accept it during their evidence.

There was also “wholly unacceptable behaviour” perpetrated by a number of individuals, the report says.

This is perhaps a glimpse into what’s to come in inquiry's final report on what happened and who is responsible.