The Infected Blood Inquiry’s final report made for very difficult reading. Established by Theresa May in 2017 the Inquiry has produced a report over seven volumes - a testament to the scale and complexity of what went wrong.
I welcome the Prime Minister’s wholehearted and unequivocal apology for this colossal injustice on behalf of successive Governments and medical professionals who failed to act, even when evidence came to light.
There have been an estimated 30,000 victims, both directly infected and affected, tragically many will not have lived to see the outcome of the Inquiry and the recognition of what went wrong.
It is now vital that the Government goes through in detail and appropriately implements the Report’s recommendations, as I am confident it will do.
The victims want to ensure that not only are their individual traumas recognised but that we generate a robust approach to tackling the defensive culture and practices which lay the seeds for such failures to take place. Professional arrogance and denial of the facts - even worse their cover-up - led to a long-running denial of justice.
We must always be on our guard for the risks of similar scandals and act swiftly - not with decades-long delays. To prevent them happening the reporting of concerns is a vital first step - one in which Jeremy Hunt was hugely focussed as Health Secretary. It should deliver prevention and not a repetition of harm. Similar lessons are applicable widely across the state.
I feel emotionally very committed to securing a just outcome to this appalling tragedy. It was humbling to meet members of the community who were infected or affected as a result of this dreadful failure of the state, both in my Ministerial role and in constituency surgeries. What was breathtaking was the sheer decency and humility of those who had suffered so much and had been ignored for so long.
As Minister for the Cabinet Office I was determined that those impacted should secure the comprehensive compensation that was the very least we owed them. I was hugely relieved to see these plans finally announced this week. Whatever the costs to achieve fair compensation nothing matches the costs and suffering endured by the victims.
