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Contaminated blood scandal: Theresa May orders inquiry Contaminated blood scandal: Theresa May orders inquiry
(about 1 hour later)
The government is to hold a full inquiry into how thousands of people were infected with hepatitis C and HIV following blood transfusions in the 1970s and 1980s, Downing Street has said. Ministers have announced a full inquiry into how thousands of people were infected with hepatitis C and HIV by contaminated blood transfusions, following a long campaign by backbench MPs and pressure groups.
The announcement follows years of campaigning by backbench MPs and pressure groups, and came hours before the government faced possible defeat in an emergency motion on the need for an inquiry. The decision by Downing Street came hours before the government faced possible defeat in a vote on an emergency motion about the need for an inquiry into the scandal that is believed to have contributed to 2,400 deaths.
Theresa May and the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, told cabinet colleagues on Tuesday that an inquiry into what the prime minister called the “contaminated blood scandal” was needed, her spokesman said. Theresa May’s spokesman said she and the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, had told the cabinet on Tuesday that an inquiry into the contaminated blood scandal was required.
Hunt said the UK-wide inquiry would look into the deaths of 2,400 people before mass screening for hepatitis C of all blood donations, which only began in 1991. Hunt said the UK-wide inquiry would look into the contamination that happened mostly in the 1970s and 80s before mass screening of all blood donations was introduced in 1991.
“Jeremy Hunt said that 2,400 people had died and it was necessary to establish the causes of this appalling injustice,” May’s spokesman said.“Jeremy Hunt said that 2,400 people had died and it was necessary to establish the causes of this appalling injustice,” May’s spokesman said.
Later on Tuesday the Commons had been due to hold an emergency debate on whether there should be such an inquiry, granted by the Commons Speaker, John Bercow, to Diana Johnson, a Labour MP who has campaigned on the issue. Giving more details to parliament during the debate on the issue, instigated by the Labour MP Diana Johnson, the health minister Philip Dunne said families would be consulted over what type of inquiry would be best.
Given that May lacks a Commons majority, it seems likely one factor in the timing of the announcement was to avoid a possible defeat in a vote on Johnson’s motion. The two most likely options were a judge-led statutory inquiry, or a Hillsborough-type independent panel, Dunne said, adding that the process would begin “as soon as practical”.
May’s spokesman said the government would consult with those affected before deciding what form the inquiry could take, the spokesman said, saying it could potentially be a judge-led statutory inquiry, or a Hillsborough-type independent panel. Pressure for an inquiry had grown amid campaigning by Johnson and Andy Burnham, the former Labour MP who is now mayor of Greater Manchester.
The junior minister Philip Dunne would give further details in parliament later on Tuesday. In his final speech to the Commons in April, Burnham said he had been contacted by victims and families who believed medical records had been falsified to obscure the scandal, saying there was evidence of “a criminal cover-up on an industrial scale”.
The inquiry would be “wide ranging”, May’s spokesman said, and details would be decided soon. Such allegations were key to the government’s decision, Dunne told MPs. “In light of these concerns and reports of new evidence and allegations of potential criminality, we think it is important to understand the extent of what is claimed, and the wider issues that arise,” he said.
The Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, said there was a need for a “broad, public, inquisitive inquiry”. If anyone had evidence of criminality they should contact police as soon as possible, Dunne added.
“Two thousand four hundred people died as a result of this contaminated blood, and it’s caused unbelievable stress to many, many more people,” he said. Burnham said the decision to hold an inquiry was “a vindication of all those people who have campaigned bravely throughout the decades, often in the wilderness”.
He added: “But this day has taken far too long in coming. People have suffered enough through contaminated blood. They have been let down by all political parties and public bodies.
“It is now incumbent on those organisations to work together to give the families truth, justice and accountability without any further delay or obstruction.”
A big factor in the timing of the announcement was likely to be the emergency debate granted to Johnson by the Commons Speaker, John Bercow.
With the leaders of six political parties in the Commons having signed a letter calling for a public inquiry into the affair, among them the Democratic Unionists, the government faced a likely defeat on a vote on the issue.
Many of those infected by the contaminated blood were people with haemophilia, who need regular transfusion of blood products. During that period many of these were imported from the US where donors were paid, a practice that increased the risk of unsuitable blood.
Donors in both the US and UK at the time included prisoners, where drug use was an added risk.
The Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, said there was a need for a “broad, public, inquisitive inquiry”, adding: “2,400 people died as a result of this contaminated blood, and it’s caused unbelievable stress to many, many more people.
“It was obviously a serious systemic failure. I think we need the strongest possible inquiry that can, if necessary, lead to prosecution actions as a result, but above all get to the bottom of it.”“It was obviously a serious systemic failure. I think we need the strongest possible inquiry that can, if necessary, lead to prosecution actions as a result, but above all get to the bottom of it.”
The government has been under long-term pressure to announce an inquiry into the transfusions of contaminated blood, notably from Johnson and Andy Burnham, the former MP who is now mayor of Greater Manchester. Beginning the debate in the Commons, Johnson, the MP for Hull North, said the best approach appeared likely to be a Hillsborough-style panel. “This has to have the support and confidence of those affected,” she said.
Johnson, the Hull North MP, credited May for having “put party politics aside in the cause of giving people their basic right to answers”. In a separate statement she said: “An inquiry must also ensure that those involved in the scandal provide oral and written evidence, and it must investigate not just the lead-up to this tragedy but the aftermath – including the alleged criminal cover-up and the loss of documents and medical records.”
Those affected and their families needed to be “at the heart” of deciding the terms of reference, Johnson said.
She added: “An inquiry must also ensure that those involved in the scandal provide oral and written evidence, and it must investigate not just the lead-up to this tragedy but the aftermath – including the alleged criminal cover-up and the loss of documents and medical records.”
Many of those infected by the contaminated blood were people with haemophilia, who need regular transfusion of blood products.
In the 1970s and 1980s, many of these were imported from the US, where donors were paid, a practice that increased the risk of unsuitable blood.
At the time, donors in both the US and UK included prisoners, where drug use was an added risk.
The government has already set up a payout scheme for those affected. In March, it was announced that the scheme could be scaled back because of the number of people developing serious health issues, pushing the programme up to £123m over budget.The government has already set up a payout scheme for those affected. In March, it was announced that the scheme could be scaled back because of the number of people developing serious health issues, pushing the programme up to £123m over budget.