Lord David Cameron has insisted he cannot recall “in any detail” being briefed about the Horizon scandal while he was British prime minister.
The British foreign secretary said on Sunday that anyone who has been involved in government in the last two decades has got to be “extremely sorry” for the miscarriage of justice.
The Tory peer, who was in No 10 between 2010 and 2016 as hundreds of subpostmasters were being pursued, faced questions about what action he took to stop it.
He told Sky’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “I don’t recall in any detail being briefed or being aware of the scale of this issue.
“We’ve got to get to the bottom of it, and that’s what inquiries do, they can look at what were ministers told, what information was put in front of them, what did they decide – because it’s hard to remember every letter and piece of paper put in front of you.”
Sir Ed Davey, the now Liberal Democrat leader who served as Lord Cameron’s postal affairs minister in the coalition government, has faced criticism for refusing to apologise.
Lord Cameron said: “This is an appalling miscarriage of justice and anyone who’s been involved in government in any way over the last 20 years has got to be extremely sorry, as I am, about what has happened.
Kevin Hollinrake, the Post Office minister, has argued that figures at the Post Office who are found to be responsible for the scandal should be jailed.
He argued it would be the “ultimate deterrent”.
Lord Cameron would not go so far but argued that anyone found to have broken the law “should face criminal charges”.
“We’ve got to get to the bottom of who is responsible for what and who should be accountable,” he said.
“And if it involves lawbreaking, we have an independent judicial system in this country and if people have broken the law they should face the consequences.”
