Infected blood compensation fears as inquiry reopens
Victims of the infected blood scandal have voiced fears over delays to compensation payments, as a public inquiry reopens on Wednesday to examine the pace of the government scheme.More than 30,000 people in the UK were given contaminated blood products between the 1970s and early 1990s, the inquiry previously concluded.The government said it had so far paid nearly £80m in compensation, having set aside a fund of £11.8bn.However, Gary Webster, who was infected with HIV and hepatitis C as a Hampshire schoolboy, said people feared they would not live to see the payments which he said were "too slow" and apparently allocated at random.
The 60-year-old said things had "gone downhill" since the main inquiry report on the scandal was published in May 2024.He said: "They're saying they hope to pay all the infected by the end of 2027 and they hope to pay the affected by the end of 2029."Well, there's two people dying a week - you only have to do the sums yourself to work out that's a lot of people that aren't going to get paid, aren't going to get the justice and will die not knowing what happened."
The Infected Blood Inquiry previously heard how NHS patients including haemophiliacs, women in childbirth and surgical patients were given blood from high-risk donors such as prisoners and drug addicts.About 3,000 people are estimated to have died as a result, including former pupils at Lord Mayor Treloar College, near Alton, Hampshire, who were infected at a specialist NHS haemophilia centre on site.The inquiry is due to hold hearings on Wednesday and Thursday to examine the "timeliness and adequacy of the government's response to compensation".
The Haemophilia Society said it hoped the reopened inquiry would "identify the urgent actions needed to fix this compensation scheme".Chief executive Kate Burt said: "Far from supporting this deeply damaged community, the delays and uncertainty created by the Government have added to their suffering."Justine Gordon-Smith, whose father Randolph died after being infected with hepatitis C, said those less directly affected by the scandal felt as though they were "at the back of the queue" for compensation.Ms Gordon-Smith, from Edinburgh, said: "Of course, the infected should be prioritised."I think what we're concerned about is the degree of elderly affected people - the widows that are in their 80s, the ageing parents."
Des Collins, a solicitor who represents many of those affected by the scandal, said: "People are dying as they wait for justice. They haven't seen it. In some cases, the claims die with them."Rachel Halford, chief executive of The Hepatitis C Trust, said: "We hope that in reopening the inquiry, Sir Brian Langstaff will be able to bring about a step change in the government's attitude to the people impacted by this terrible scandal."Government must stop ignoring their concerns about the compensation system, its serious inadequacies, IBCA's [Infected Blood Compensation Authority] complete lack of independence, and the glacial rate at which people are being invited to claim."As of 24 April, 475 people have been invited to start their claim and 77 payments have been made totalling more than £78m, according to IBCA figures.A spokesperson for the IBCA said: "Those impacted by the infected blood scandal have waited decades for recognition and compensation, and that is why our priority remains paying as many people as soon as possible."We have learned from every claim we have supported... to increase the number of claims each week."We are also expanding our team of trained claim managers. This means we can make more payments and make them faster."At the end of April, we opened our service to 200 more people and from 5 May we will open our service to another 200 people. From then on, we will ask for an average of 100 people to start their claims each and every week."A Government spokesperson said: "The victims of this scandal have suffered unspeakably."We have paid nearly £80m in compensation so far, and have set aside £11.8bn to deliver what is one of the most comprehensive compensation schemes in modern history."
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