Ex-Post Office chairman claims colleagues said ‘not an ounce of racism in me’

Sacked Post Office chairman Henry Staunton has denied using racist or misogynist comments in a meeting – claiming colleagues had said “there was not an ounce of racism in me”.

Henry Staunton told the Horizon IT inquiry he was “deeply stung” by the inappropriate comment allegations following a meeting concerning candidates to be chair of the Post Office’s Remuneration Committee.

Mr Staunton was dismissed by former business secretary Kemi Badenoch in January, as she said she was forced to intervene over “difficulties” with Post Office governance, leading to a public row between the pair.

Ms Badenoch proceeded to say the former chairman was being investigated over bullying allegations prior to his dismissal.

Mr Staunton told the inquiry his “willingness to contradict the Post Office orthodoxy on the treatment of postmasters meant my card was marked.”

In his evidence to the inquiry, Mr Staunton said he was a “champion of diversity”, and colleagues had raised concerns with him about how the investigation into his comments was “contrived, unfair and bizarre”.

In his witness statement, Mr Staunton said: “I deny those allegations completely, and felt deeply stung by them.

“At the Post Office, as in my career previously, I was a champion of diversity.

“I find racism and misogyny utterly abhorrent. This was well-known to my colleagues at the Post Office.

“By way of example only, I responded strongly when I became aware that the Post Office had used racist terms to categorise postmasters.

“I told senior leadership that I was ‘furious’ on behalf of our minority ethnic staff, and indeed on behalf of all our colleagues.

“In the subsequent board meeting when we discussed this matter, I said the company’s employees felt let down and questioned how we had managed to score ‘this huge own goal’.”

Mr Staunton took up the Post Office role in December 2022 following nine years as chairman of WHSmith.

He said he attended an interview with barrister Marianne Tutin who conducted an investigation into a complaint made by former Post Office HR director Jane Davies in late January.

Mr Staunton also said he was “shocked” at Ms Badenoch’s words in the House of Commons that he was being investigated for bullying – describing her comments as “baseless”.

He said: “I had been more than willing to co-operate with the investigation as it was important to me to clear my name in the face of these smears.”

Continuing to address the inappropriate comment accusations, Mr Staunton said: “The allegations about me have caused me both personal anguish and professional difficulties; I was forced to respond to questions from the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAEW) about the investigation.

“I was very grateful that three of my former non-executive director colleagues, all of whom come from minority ethnic backgrounds, as well as Ms Davies, the former (chief people officer) wrote in my defence to the ICAEW to put on record that I had never exhibited any racist or sexist behaviours.

“All three directors have said they thought there was not an ounce of racism in me and indeed I was a champion of greater diversity of ethnicity and gender on the board.

“Separately, the non-executive directors all expressed orally to me their concerns about the fact and process of the investigation itself, calling it variously ‘contrived’, ‘unfair’ and ‘bizarre’.”

Questioned whether the culture within the Post Office encourages whistleblowers to speak openly about their concerns, Mr Staunton said: “Based on my own experience I do not think the culture has encouraged people to be able to speak up safely and without repercussions.

“While I was not given reasons for my termination, it seems likely that my willingness to contradict the Post Office orthodoxy on the treatment of postmasters meant my card was marked.

“I subsequently suffered the public trashing of my reputation.”

More than 900 subpostmasters were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 after faulty Horizon accounting software made it look as though money was missing from their shops.

Hundreds are still awaiting compensation despite the previous government announcing that those who have had convictions quashed are eligible for £600,000 payouts.

Published: 01/10/2024 by Radio NewsHub