USA (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The oldest surviving victim of the Post Office Horizon IT scandal has been awarded an OBE for her role in exposing wrongful convictions.
Beginning in 1985, Betty Brown, 92, and her late husband Oswall operated the Annfield Plain Post Office in County Durham. However, after spending over £50,000 of their assets to make up for nonexistent shortages, they were thrown out in 2003.
One of the government’s compensation plans recently gave her the long-awaited payoff.
On behalf of all the scandal victims, Mrs. Brown told Breakfast that she accepted the distinction in the New Year’s Honours list.
“Every one of them should have an OBE,”
she said.
“Every one of them for what they’ve [Post Office] put us through and what we have stood solid and faithful for. I did it for justice.”
Due to inaccurate information provided by the Horizon IT system, over 900 sub-postmasters were erroneously punished. Like Mrs. Brown, thousands more were compelled to compensate for the purported losses at their UK branches.
One of the biggest miscarriages of justice in the UK has been called the scandal.
Mrs. Brown stated that she had finally “been heard by the system” and was “honoured and humbled” to be appointed an OBE.
Mrs. Brown is not the first Post Office advocate to get recognition on the list of New Year’s honors. Sir Alan Bates, who starred in the ITV series “Mr. Bates vs. The Post Office,” was knighted in 2024, and four former sub-postmasters who became activists were recognized for their contributions to justice a year ago.
The 92-year-old was one of the first 555 victims to participate in Sir Alan’s historic collective lawsuit against the Post Office.
She eventually had to sell her branch at a loss, despite it being one of the most prosperous in the area.
She earlier stated that the incident “absolutely destroyed my whole life” while discussing it.
Mrs. Brown and Sir Alan were both covered by the Group Litigation Order compensation plan, which gave the claimants the choice to pursue their own settlement or accept a set amount of £75,000.
After receiving her payout in November 2025, she told:
“At last, after 26 years, they’ve recognised justice,”
and added:
“pity they took so long.”
A government spokesperson said:
“We must never lose sight of the Horizon scandal’s human impact on postmasters and their families, which the Horizon inquiry has highlighted so well.
Betty Brown has been a fierce advocate for postmasters and this government has now paid out over £1.3bn to more than 10,000 victims.”
The Post Office stated it “unreservedly” apologized for the pain “caused to postmasters and their loved ones” when the first report of the official investigation into the scandal was released in July.
What did Betty Brown specifically campaign for after the Horizon scandal?
Betty Brown campaigned for justice, full compensation, and sanctioned acknowledgment for all Post Office Horizon reproach victims, including quashing unlawful persuasions and supporting family requital.
She joined Sir Alan Bates’ group action as one of the original 555 heirs, pushing for government recognition of the defective Horizon software’s part in over 900 unlawful executions; Brown sought systemic responsibility, censuring ministers for inactivity despite knowing the issues.
Brown emphasized precluding obliviousness of destroyed lives, jailings, self-murders( linked to 13 deaths), broken marriages, and neglected children demanding practical aid like casing and fiscal security over remedy for affected families.
