Former Post Office boss Paula Vennells will hand back her CBE following the scandalous prosecution of hundreds of innocent subpostmasters.
Vennells consistently denied there was any issues over the Horizon IT system and she was appointed the CBE in December 2018.
More than 1.2 million people signed a petition calling for her to be stripped of the CBE following the ITV drama which highlighted the miscarriage of justice.
In a statement, Vennells said, “I continue to support and focus on co-operating with the Inquiry and expect to be giving evidence in the coming months.
“I have so far maintained my silence as I considered it inappropriate to comment publicly while the Inquiry remains ongoing and before I have provided my oral evidence.
“I am, however, aware of the calls from subpostmasters and others to return my CBE.
“I have listened and I confirm that I return my CBE with immediate effect.
“I am truly sorry for the devastation caused to the sub-postmasters and their families, whose lives were torn apart by being wrongly accused and wrongly prosecuted as a result of the Horizon system.
“I now intend to continue to focus on assisting the Inquiry and will not make any further public comment until it has concluded.”
