Update on the Government response to the Infected Blood Inquiry

With your permission Mr Speaker, I would like to take the opportunity to provide an update on the Government's progress in responding to the Infected Blood Inquiry's report. 

I want to first start by reiterating that the Inquiry's final report laid bare harrowing aspects that make it vital we provide regular updates on this work. The infected blood scandal is an injustice that has spanned across decades  on an unprecedented scale: thousands of people have died, and continue sadly to die every week. Lives have been shattered, and the voices of victims ignored for decades. People have watched their loved ones die, and, in one of the most chilling  aspects that the Inquiry brought to light, children were used as objects of research. It is hard to conceive the scale of damage done, and the incredible suffering of all those impacted. 

On 20 May, the country bore witness to the devastating findings of the Infected Blood Inquiry's Report. It was a national moment, a profound moment of shame for the British state and a moment of long overdue recognition for the victims and their loved ones. My Right Honourable Friend the Prime Minister, in his former role as Leader of the Opposition, acknowledged that suffering was caused by wrongdoing, delay and systemic failure by all parties across the board, compounded by institutional defensiveness. The former Prime Minister issued an apology on behalf of the State for the devastating impact that the use of infected blood and infected blood products has had on countless lives, and Today, on behalf of this Government, I reiterate that deep and heartfelt sorry.

Firstly, let me reassure the House that the Government is committed to acting on the findings of the Infected Blood Inquiry report to ensure swift resolution. We are also committed to working on a cross-party basis, and will work with others to deliver the compensation scheme and get final payments to victims as soon as possible. It is vital that we shine a penetrating light upon the lessons that must be learned, and that includes paying comprehensive compensation to those infected and affected by the infected blood scandal.

I would also like to thank honourable Members who have played prominent roles in pushing this work to this point. My Right Honourable Friend, the Member for Kingston Upon Hull North, has always been and I know will continue to be, a powerful advocate for this cause. Her work in pushing forward the cause and representing the voice of those infected and affected was unquestionably pivotal to reaching this point. I would also like to thank my predecessor as paymaster general, the Right Honourable Member for Salisbury. As I said yesterday at questions I am grateful for his work in the lead up to announcing the compensation scheme and indeed his collegiate approach in doing so. I hope we can continue to work together on this important issue.

The scale of the horror that was uncovered by Sir Brian Langstaff's report almost defies belief, and one of the issues which the report brought to light is the importance of addressing the unacceptable culture of defensiveness in the public sector. We must make sure that the reputation of people and protecting institutions is never put above public service. This Government will bring forward legislation to place a duty of candour on public servants and authorities to make sure this kind of behaviour cannot happen again. That legislation must be the catalyst for a changed culture in the public sector by improving transparency and improving accountability. It will address that culture of defensiveness and help ensure that the lack of candour uncovered in the Infected Blood Scandal, and indeed in too many other instances such as Hillsborough and Horizon, is not again repeated. 

However, we also recognise that as well as delivering institutional change, we must also provide financial redress to the people whose lives have been irreversibly, and tragically, changed as a result of the infected blood scandal. 

One of the most powerful conclusions in the Inquiry's report is that an apology is meaningful only if it is accompanied by action. It is now my responsibility to carry forward this action and I hope to lead this work not only with the support of this House, but with sensitivity and respect towards the people who have been so unfairly affected by this scandal. After all that has happened, listening to the voice of victims is crucial and I will endeavour to work closely with the infected blood community as we progress this work. 

I would also like to take this opportunity to update the House on the progress being made in establishing the Infected Blood Compensation Authority. The Victims and Prisoners Act legally created the authority on 24 May. Since this point, the interim chief executive, David Foley, has been working closely with Sir Robert Francis KC, the interim chair of the Infected Blood Compensation Authority to set up the compensation service. It is frankly no small task. The Cabinet Office is supporting the organisation as it recruits and sets up a service that is easy to access and simple to use. The Infected Blood Compensation Authority itself will then provide regular updates to the infected blood community, and all others interested, in its work.

Let me turn now to compensation. On 21 May I welcomed the former administration's announcement on compensation, and there is an urgent need to get money to people in the most timely way possible. 

Further interim payments of £210,000 were made to people who are beneficiaries of the Infected Blood Support Schemes living with infections on 24 June, bringing the total which has been paid in compensation to victims to over £1 billion. 

However, we recognise this is not enough for many others who have also been waiting for far too long. The Cabinet Office is working closely with DHSC, the devolved governments and the administrators of the existing Infected Blood Support Schemes to establish the process for making interim payments of £100,000 to the estates of deceased people who were infected with contaminated blood or blood products and whose deaths have not yet been recognised. Work is progressing to ensure these payments are made as soon as we are able to and I am pleased to confirm to the House today that applications for these payments will open in October. The Government will set out further details of this in due course.

There is also the matter of the final compensation Scheme. We are committed to delivering this work, and delivering it quickly. We are also committed to getting it right. The proposed Compensation Scheme was published on gov.uk on 21st May and we are committed as I indicated to the shadow paymaster General yesterday to making regulations to establish the Scheme by 24 August, as we are obliged to do by the Victims and Prisoners Act. 

But  we also recognise the importance of building the support and trust of those who will access the Scheme. Sir Robert Francis undertook an engagement exercise in June at the former Government's request, with the support of all parties. This exercise engaged those who have been most impacted by this scandal on the content of the compensation scheme. 

I have been engaging with Sir Robert to hear his advice following his meetings with members of the Infected Blood Community. I am considering his advice carefully with a view to publishing both his report and the Government's position on this, in advance of 24th August.

Finally, I would like to reassure the House that there will be an opportunity here to fully debate the content of the Inquiry's final report. I am conscious that given the timing of the recent election there has not as yet been time for Honourable Members to do so, and it is essential in my view that members of this House have enough time to digest and debate the devastating findings the report sets out. 

The Government is considering Sir Brian Langstaff's recommendations and we will provide an update to Parliament on the progress we are making to respond to the Inquiry's recommendations by the end of the year, as Sir Brian recommended in his report.

The Infected Blood Scandal is one of the gravest injustices this country has seen. I want to end by paying tribute to the courage and determination of the victims of this scandal, those infected, those affected, who fought so hard for justice. And in every debate we remember that they are at the centre of all of this, and it is for them that we must come together to restore the sense that this is a country that can rectify injustice. They deserve nothing less.

I commend this statement to the House.