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00:00Dewey Lewis of Penrhyn Jaydrith is a former sub-postmaster who endured four months of
00:07imprisonment and had to wear a tag for another four months for a crime he never committed.
00:13He hasn't wanted me to raise his case in the Chamber before because he said to have his
00:17hopes raised and then dashed would destroy him. Two weeks ago he got a letter, I'm glad
00:23to say, to say that his convictions were quashed. But the damage that has been done to the reputation
00:28of the post office in rural Wales is so immense now that people are no longer prepared to
00:31work in post offices. How can he assure me, and I welcome that he says that he believes
00:37the business model is no longer fit for purpose, how can we be sure that we will have strategic
00:41planning to serve those communities which were once served so well by people like Dewey
00:45Lewis?
00:46I recognise very much what she is saying. In some cases I have had personal friends
00:54of mine who were directly affected by this who, even though they obviously knew I was
00:58also their MP as well as their friend, didn't feel they were able to tell me about it because
01:03they were so concerned as to the impact of their reputation. They couldn't even tell
01:07a friend who was a Member of Parliament, even though it was something that was clearly affecting
01:11their lives to a very significant degree. I'm sure like me she's had situations where
01:17one provider of postal services in a relatively rural area obviously represent Greater Manchester
01:22as it gets out towards rural Derbyshire, where people want very much a service to continue
01:28but for various business reasons the provider is moving on. It's hard sometimes to find
01:32someone willing to take that on, not just because of this scandal but because of the
01:35business model. I can assure her that the work we are already doing is about the future,
01:41is about recognising that, is about making sure we have the people in charge who recognise
01:45that and that that has to change. It's going to be a very substantial piece of work for
01:49my Minister and I but I think it is essential because we couldn't just provide redress for
01:53this scandal without looking to the future and making sure we get this right.