Shrewsbury woman's 'delight' over cash for postmasters in scandal

Rubbina Shaheen said it had been very difficult to come to terms with what had happened

A woman has welcomed news that people wrongly convicted in a Post Office IT scandal will get interim compensation of up to £100,000.

So far, 59 former sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses have had their convictions quashed.

Rubbina Shaheen, from Shrewsbury, who was jailed for a year in 2010, said her life would be "in comfort".

The government, which announced the interim compensation news, has agreed to fund the initial payments.

More people are due in court over the coming months.

There were more than 700 prosecutions based on evidence from the Horizon software system.

Hundreds of people who ran Post Office branches were subsequently convicted of various offences, including theft and false accounting.

However, the IT was found to have bugs and defects that left a black hole in accounts.

Ms Shaheen, who ran Greenfields Post Office in Shrewsbury and was forced to sell her home and live in a van, said she was "really delighted" with the announcement.

The former sub-postmistress said: "So at the moment it's just, like we say, just a little bit to keep us quiet really.

"We get a decent compensation, which will put whatever life that we've got left in comfort really.

"But what we've lost, we'll never get back, will we?"

Sub-postmasters celebrated the quashing of their convictions

Ms Shaheen said: "It's been 10 years and it's been really, really hard because of everything that's going on, fighting the case... plus my health is not that good.

"It's been stressful and very hard and very difficult to come to terms... (with) what's happened."

Postal Affairs Minister Paul Scully has said the "suffering and distress these postmasters and their families have gone through" could not "be overstated".

He added: "While nothing will make up for the years of pain they faced after this appalling injustice, I hope this initial step provides a measure of comfort.

"The Post Office has started to turn a corner in terms of dealing with its past mistakes - and this government will support them in doing so wherever possible."