Post Office hero Alan Bates knighted in King Charles's birthday honours list
Post Office campaigner Alan Bates was awarded a knighthood for his work exposing the Horizon IT scandal.
Post Office hero Alan Bates has been knighted for his fight for justice in the Horizon scandal.
The campaigner has led a crusade against Post Office bosses on behalf of hundreds of subpostmasters who had been wrongly accused of mishandling money at Post Office branches.
More than 700 subpostmasters were prosecuted by the Post Office and handed criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015 as Fujitsu's faulty Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches.
After over 20 years of campaigning, the King has recognised Sir Alan’s efforts as a true British hero in his annual Birthday Honours.
Sir Alan, who is the title character of the ITV dramatisation of his campaign Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, said he heard the news while watching ex-Post Office boss Paual Vennells at the Horizon IT inquiry.
The former subpostmaster said the news came as a surprise but was honoured to be recognised for his “hard slog over many years”.
The lead campaigner, who founded the Justice for Subpostmaster Alliance (JFSA) had previously turned down being made an OBE while Ms Vennells held on to her CBE award because it “felt wrong”.
Related articles
“I felt it would have been quite offensive to many of the group if I'd accepted it,” he said.
But in January she powered to mounting public pressure and handed the honour back.
More than a million people signed a petition calling for Ms Vennells to be stripped of her CBE, after the scandal came to the forefront of the news agenda following the four-part TV series.
Reacting to the knighthood, Sir Alan, of Llandudno in north Wales, said: "It was a bit of a surprise, it sort of came out of the blue.
"I'm quite honoured by it - to be recognised for the work that I've done over the years.
"It's been a hard slog over many years."
He explained that the day he found out was a bit of a whirlwind, as within the space of a few hours he had spoken to the Metropolitan Police about the investigation into the Horizon scandal, watched some of Ms Vennells' inquiry evidence, learned of his knighthood and saw a General Election be called.
Speaking humbly, Sir Alan added that his knighthood wasn’t about him - it’s a reflection of the group, adding: “And recognition of the horrendous things that have happened to them and the story's not over yet.
"And if this adds another string to my bow to help me go forward and get some finality for people in the financial settlement then so be it."
Hundreds of sub-postmasters are still awaiting compensation, despite the Government announcing that those who have had convictions for theft and false accounting quashed are eligible for payouts of £600,000.
In 2019 – after years of campaigning – the group gained a high court victory when a judge ruled that the Post Office's system was full of “bugs, errors and defects”, resulting in the organisation agreeing to settle with the 555 claimants.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been looking into ways to clear the names of those wrongfully convicted.
Sir Alan is among more than 1,000 people from across the UK to receive honours in Friday's list.
Other recipients include former prime minister Gordon Brown, artist Tracey Emin and the King’s top medical team.
The 75-year-old monarch, who was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer at the start of the year, has personally honoured his doctors for their personal service to the monarch and the Royal Family.
It comes in the wake of the King and the Princess of Wales’s cancer diagnoses this year.
Dr Michael Dixon, head of the Royal Medical Household, has been made a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) while Charles's GP Dr Fiona Butler - otherwise known as the Apothecary to the King - is now a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO).
Awards of the Royal Victorian Order are in the King's gift and are bestowed independently of Downing Street to people who have served the monarch or the royal family in a personal way.
Also honoured as an LVO is Michael Dooley for his role as Camilla's physician.
Meanwhile, representatives from two financial investment firms have been recognised for their personal services to the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Nicholas Osler, partner in private client tax services at Smith and Williamson, was made an LVO, as was Richard Fitzalan Howard, senior adviser at Stonehage Fleming Investment Management.
