May wins praise for '˜blood scandal' inquiry

THERESA May has announced a wide-ranging inquiry into the contaminated blood 'scandal' of the 1970s and 1980s which left 2,400 people dead.
Diana JohnsonDiana Johnson
Diana Johnson

The Prime Minister said the treatment of thousands of haemophiliacs and other patients with blood products infected with hepatitis C and HIV was an “appalling tragedy” which should never have happened.

“Thousands of patients expected the world-class care our NHS is famous for, but they were failed,” she said in a statement after a debate prompted by Hull North MP Diana Johnson.

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“At least 2,400 people died and thousands more were exposed to Hepatitis C and HIV, with life-changing consequences.

“The victims and their families who have suffered so much pain and hardship deserve answers as to how this could possibly have happened. While this Government has invested record amounts to support the victims, they have been denied those answers for too long and I want to put that right.”

The announcement was welcomed by campaigners who have been pressing for years for an inquiry into the import of the clotting agent Factor VIII from the US. Much of the plasma used to make the product came from donors like prison inmates who sold their blood which turned out to be infected.

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham - who as shadow home secretary championed the campaign for an inquiry - said the announcement was a “major breakthrough”, albeit a belated one for people who had suffered for decades.

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He said: “Just as with Hillsborough, there must be a ‘families first’ approach at all times.”

The announcement came just two days after six party leaders in the Commons - including Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn - signed a joint letter calling for an inquiry.

Welcoming the move, Mr Corbyn said the investigation should have the potential to trigger prosecutions.

Downing Street said they would now open discussions with those affected as to exactly what form the inquiry would take. “Consultation will now take place with those affected to decide exactly what form the inquiry will take, such as a Hillsborough-style independent panel or a judge-led statutory inquiry,” the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said.

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Around 4,800 patients are thought to have been infected with hepatitis C, while 1,200 also contracted HIV, which can cause Aids.

Campaigners have claimed the Department of Health became aware of a problem as early as 1983, but the NHS continued to give tainted blood products to haemophiliacs.

Labour’s Diana Johnson said Theresa May has “earned a place in history” by launching an inquiry into the contaminated blood scandal.

The Hull North MP, a long-time campaigner for those affected by the tainted blood products, had been granted an emergency debate in the Commons.

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Liz Carroll, chief executive of the Haemophilia Society, said the Government now needed to move quickly to agree the remit of the inquiry with the affected community.

“For decades people with bleeding disorders and their families have sought the truth,” she said. “Instead, they were told by the Government that no mistakes were made.”