ONE of the victims of the Post Office scandal whose story was told on an ITV drama said she will 'not stop fighting' until all victims are paid compensation.

Jo Hamilton, a former sub-postmaster from South Warnborough, says she suffered a ‘horrendous ordeal’ when she was forced to beg and borrow money after being accused of stealing £36,000 by the Post Office.

She pleaded guilty in 2008 to false accounting for fear of going to prison. However, her conviction was quashed in 2021 after she was found to be a victim of the Horizon Post Office Scandal, where a faulty accounting system led to more than 700 sub-postmasters being prosecuted.

READ MORE: Jo Hamilton was falsely accused of stealing £36k by the Post Office

Their story has been told in a four-part ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, which laid bare what has been called the ‘most widespread miscarriage of justice in British legal history’.

After the show aired Jo told the Gazette that although she has received compensation other victims including members of the original Alan Bates group who "fought for justice" have still not been paid.

Part of the Justice For Subpostmasters Alliance, Mr Bates was one of the lead claimants in the original court battle that led the campaign to expose the scandal.

He's now pushing for compensation for victims - many of whom are still waiting for payouts.

Jo said she is glad the programme has brought the scandal to light but she remains "frustrated" that the fight is far from over.

She said: "I will not shut up until the original group gets paid. What the Government is doing is using the headlines to distract from the fact that not everyone has been given money, it feels like a diversion tactic in the hope that people will forget about the fact not everyone has been paid."

She continued: "After all these years we are still fighting for this. When this all started, I was in my 40s and I am now in my 60s."

Despite this she said she "cannot stop fighting for justice". 

Talking to the Gazette about the news that the former Post Office boss Paula Vennells will hand back her CBE following the fallout of the Horizon IT scandal, she said: "I don't think it makes me feel any better really.

"It is good she has given it back but she should have never accepted it in the first place or be given it."

SEE ALSO: Jo Hamilton welcomes news Paula Vennells to return CBE

The Post Office was asked for an update but the Gazette was told to contact the Department for Business and Trade. 

A Department for Business and Trade spokesperson said: “We have made funding available to ensure all victims of the Horizon Scandal can deservedly receive compensation and have established the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry to identify what happened and ensure lessons are learnt.

“While we do not comment on individual cases, over £148 million of compensation has been paid across three schemes and all those who have their Horizon convictions overturned are offered £600,000 in compensation.”

The inquiry into the scandal began in September 2020 to provide a public summary of the failings that occurred with the Fujitsu faulty software, Horizon. It is due to end later this year.