Paula Vennells has been seen in public for the first time after allegations that she may have been told about a “covert operations team” that could remotely access the Horizon system and adjust branches’ accounts two years before she appeared in parliament. Channel 4 News obtained a 2013 recording in which the Post Office’s chief lawyer Susan Crichton confirmed twice that Ms Vennells was aware of the allegations, two years before prosecutions were halted against subpostmasters. The former Post Office boss denied to parliament in correspondence that remote access was possible. In footage published on Sunday (7 April) Ms Vennells did not reply to a question from a Channel 4 reporter on the allegations. The Post Office was approached for comment.