UK EY investigated over post office audits tied to Horizon scandal

EY says it will fully cooperate with investigation into Horizon-linked audits

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The UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has launched an investigation into Big Four accounting firm EY over its audits of the Post Office during the height of the Horizon IT scandal between March 2015 and March 2018.

The probe will focus on whether EY complied with auditing standards, specifically in relation to the now-discredited Horizon computer system, developed by Fujitsu, which led to the wrongful conviction of hundreds of sub-postmasters.

"The FRC has commenced an investigation into EY’s audits of Post Office Limited for the financial years ended March 2015 to March 2018," the regulator said in a statement on Wednesday.

EY said it would cooperate fully with the investigation and added that it takes its auditing responsibilities “extremely seriously.”

The Post Office declined to comment.

The Horizon system became central to what has been described as the UK's worst miscarriage of justice, with over 900 sub-postmasters accused of fraud and theft based on faulty system data.

Many were prosecuted directly by the Post Office.

The FRC said its investigation will not examine issues raised during recent public hearings, which did not specifically cover EY’s audits.

However, the regulator will look into the role of statutory auditors in the context of financial reporting and potential risks flagged during their reviews.

In evidence heard last year, EY had reportedly warned the Post Office’s then-chair Alice Perkins as early as 2011 that Horizon posed “a real risk” and questioned whether the system “captures data accurately”. That warning was not escalated internally, the inquiry was told.

The latest development comes as campaigners Lee Castleton, Seema Misra, and Chris Head, who were among those wrongfully accused, were awarded OBEs at Windsor Castle on Wednesday.