Victims of the contaminated blood scandal last night warned Theresa May they will have ‘no faith’ in a public inquiry
Victims of the contaminated blood scandal last night warned Theresa May they will have ‘no faith’ in a public inquiry as long as the Department of Health is involved.
Families and survivors expressed concerns because of the central role of the department in the tragedy that killed 2,400 people.
They accused health officials – who are working to determine the inquiry’s format – of ignoring warnings and using victims for unauthorised trials.
Theresa May earlier this year announced the inquiry into the ‘appalling tragedy’ that killed thousands infected with hepatitis and HIV after being given a contaminated clotting agent in the 1970s and 1980s.
But in a letter to the Prime Minister, the Haemophilia Society last night said its members believe that the Department is ‘clearly conflicted in its role in drafting the terms of reference’ for the inquiry.
Liz Carroll, chief executive of The Haemophilia Society, said: ‘Our members have one last chance to get closure and justice for what happened.
‘This is why it is so important the inquiry has a comprehensive terms of reference that will uncover what occurred and make recommendations on what should have been done differently.
‘As we have seen with the inquiry into historic child sex abuse, without comprehensive and effective terms of reference an inquiry will ineptly blunder from issue to issue and not deliver the justice those affected by the scandal seek.
‘Equally, we have seen in both the Grenfell inquiry and in the Scottish Penrose inquiry how a chair that does not appropriately engage with the affected community and does not carry their confidence wastes the time of those affected and forces them to unnecessarily relive the pain of what occurred.
The Department of Health has previously said it is ‘absolutely committed to a thorough and transparent inquiry’
‘The affected community will have no faith in an inquiry with terms of reference and a chair decided by the Department of Health.’
In July, it was announced there would be an inquiry into the scandal that killed 2,400 people infected with hepatitis and HIV in the 1970s and 1980s after being given contaminated stocks of the clotting agent Factor VIII, used to treat patients with haemophilia.
Minutes of papers disclosed by the Daily Mail suggest patients were given the deadly blood for at least five years after health officials became aware of the danger.
The Department of Health has previously said it is ‘absolutely committed to a thorough and transparent inquiry’.