Baroness Twycross (Lab)

I thank noble Lords for the hugely important points raised in this debate. If I do not cover questions that they raised, I will endeavour to write with further details and put the letter in the Library. Hearing your Lordships’ contributions today is a stark reminder of the enormity of this scandal and the utterly shocking truths that the inquiry brought to light. I am clear, as the noble Earl, Lord Howe, alluded to, that there is consensus across your Lordships’ House on the extent of the failure, the need to ensure redress as far as it is ever possible and to make that through the compensation scheme as quickly as possible, and that apologies are worth absolutely nothing without action to ensure that nothing like this can happen again. That is easily said but over many years it has proved almost impossible to deliver. We must do this with humility, as the noble Earl, Lord Howe, said. A number of noble Lords mentioned the delay to the inquiry taking place, and it clearly took too long. I note the role of the noble Baroness, Lady May, in calling the inquiry, without which we would not have the report we are debating today. The personal testimony of many of your Lordships, including the noble Baroness, Lady Featherstone, reflects the many tragic stories told in the inquiry’s report, as did the description by my noble friend Lord Jones of his discussions and contact with his constituent’s sons, which I found quite distressing, and the description from the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, of her own engagement with the children at Treloar School. I am clear that no amount of money could possibly compensate both those infected or affected. I will not repeat the points that the noble Earl, Lord Howe, made on the review of the noble Lord, Lord Darzi, apart from to thank him for seeing the relevance of the review to what the report outlines, not least in how we need to remedy the faults in the health system. It is clear that the government response to so many of the failures described in the report, including the emerging threat of AIDS in blood and blood products, should have been faster and better. Today, although no medical treatment can be completely risk free, current safety standards for blood donation and transfusion are rigorous, and England’s blood supply is one of the safest in the world. Throughout the blood donation journey, there are now processes in place to ensure the safety of blood and blood products. These include the donation safety check form, testing for specific infections, donor deferrals, regulations and informed consent. I noted with concern the points that the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, made on blood transfusions, and will write to her on the points she raised and place a copy in the Library. In response to the noble Baroness’s points on finding the undiagnosed, I can say that GP services have introduced a new case-finding question for patients registering with a new practice to locate people who received a blood transfusion prior to 1996. In response to the noble Baroness’s point on the resources available for the Patient Safety Commissioner to do their job properly, I point out that we have today published the terms of reference for a review by Dr Penny Dash that will look at the patient safety landscape. This review will cover the office of the Patient Safety Commissioner, along with other organisations, and will help us to understand what is required to have effective national leadership on patient safety. In response to the point from the noble Baroness, Lady Featherstone, on the moral obligation to compensate victims, I agree that a failure to deliver compensation for those infected and affected by the infected blood scandal would be a moral failure, and it is not one that this Government intend to commit. On the level of funding made available to the infected blood support schemes, the Government are committed to ensuring that compensation is paid swiftly, not least because the victims of the scandal have already suffered unspeakably and for far too long. Noble Lords are right to raise the fact that, prior to the setting up of the support schemes in 2017, the previous approach of providing assistance was not effective. We can be in no doubt that everyone should have paid more regard to the victims of this scandal and sought to establish the truth for them much earlier. The time it took for the truth to come to light is unacceptable. The right reverend Prelate and the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett, raised the Orgreave inquiry. Although that is not the main topic of this debate, I confirm to noble Lords that this was a manifesto commitment of the Labour Party during the election campaign, so it will happen. The noble Lord, Lord Dobbs, referred to the countless examples of other occasions where the system becomes self-serving. However, I am not sure that I agree that a return to a past establishment that served the public better would serve the public best, because I am not sure that that is ever what an establishment does unless it receives the appropriate challenge required. Both the noble Lord, Lord Bichard, and the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett, highlighted the risk of complacency. We cannot afford to be complacent, and the noble Baronesses, Lady Bennett and Lady Brinton, rightly highlighted the importance of asking questions. In response to the noble Lord, Lord Lansley, I say that I have no doubt of the good intention of Ministers, but the lesson I take as a new Minister is the need to ask questions, and the right questions at the right time. One of the most shocking elements of the whole scandal—one of many—was the destruction of key documents, including ministerial advice and medical records. Records of any sort should not have been destroyed. Today, the Department of Health and Social Care employs robust document management procedures, with all its registered files under the direct control of its departmental records office. A number of noble Lords, including the noble Lord, Lord Bichard, focused on process and what needs to change as a result of the findings. He noted the honesty and transparency already required. We rightly say that nothing like this should ever happen again, but these words are meaningless without a clear way forward. The Prime Minister’s announcement that legislation on a duty of candour will be introduced by the Government is one step towards ensuring that change will happen. The duty will apply to public authorities and public servants and will include criminal sanctions. Culture and behaviours also need to change, alongside thought being given to the way in which inquiries function and how the findings of inquiries are addressed. I note the reservations of the noble Earl, Lord Howe, on the duty of candour, and look forward to future discussion on how we can make sure that this might be effective, not just for the current period but in future as well. The noble Lord, Lord Bichard, and the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Sheffield asked what will be the scope of the Bill on the duty of candour—as noted, it is otherwise known as the Hillsborough Bill—and what the Government consider a wide application for how it would be introduced. It will be introduced to Parliament before the next anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. Following the Prime Minister’s announcement, its scope and policy detail continue to be worked through, and the Government will provide more detail at the end of the year. The Bill will set out the duties on public authorities and public servants, including any consequences for breaches, and that will include criminal offences. The noble Lord, Lord Dobbs, asked how many civil servants had been disciplined and whether charges had been brought. That is for the police and the Crown Prosecution Service, who will look at these matters very carefully. However, should they take any such matters further, the Government will co-operate fully. I will ask a question on discipline issues, which is a separate matter, and will write to the noble Lord. I found the contribution of the noble Baroness, Lady Berridge, very interesting. I welcomed her focus on the important role of public inquiries as a measure that is required and used when things go wrong; as a sign that the system is working when things fail, rather than a sign of failure itself. I do not have answers to all the noble Baroness’s questions, but I will endeavour to write on those I cannot answer today. Noble Lords will have already noted the report that the noble Baroness mentioned, published by the Statutory Inquiries Committee on 16 September, which made recommendations on the efficacy and practice of public inquiries. The Government are carefully considering these recommendations, as well as those of other public inquiries, and will respond in detail as soon as possible. On the question raised by the noble Baroness, Lady Berridge, and a number of other noble Lords—I apologise for not mentioning them by name—concerning the role of Parliament in monitoring what happens after a public inquiry, the Government are looking closely at the recommendations made by the House of Lords inquiry and will respond by 16 November. As someone who has paid close attention to a number of public inquiries relating to some of my previous roles, for me, if we do not find a way of monitoring things carefully, we cannot give an assurance that we will prevent future harm or some of the issues we have seen in the past. The noble Baroness, Lady Featherstone, asked about the autonomy and social impact awards we have made available for the affected. A social impact award for past and future consequences of the infection, including stigma and social isolation, will be awarded to people who were infected or their estate, and to affected persons. An autonomy award addressing the distress and suffering caused by the impact of the disease, including interference with family and private lives, will be awarded to people who were infected or their estate, and to affected partners, parents and children. On which affected persons will be eligible for compensation, affected persons will be eligible where their case is linked to that of a person with an eligible infection under the compensation scheme, and is not dependent on whether the affected person had a financial dependency on the person with an infection. This includes affected partners, children, parents, siblings and other friends and family who cared for loved ones with an infection without reward or remuneration. So far, over £1 billion has been paid out in interim compensation payments to victims of the infected blood scandal. This month, applications will open for interim payments of £100,000 to the estates of deceased people who were registered with an infected blood support scheme or predecessor Alliance House organisation, and who were infected with contaminated blood or blood products and whose deaths have not yet been recognised. The right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Sheffield and a number of other noble Lords, including my noble friend Lady Keeley, raised concerns about the timescale for compensation. I am conscious that the community wants further assurance on this. The Government expect the Infected Blood Compensation Authority to begin making payments under the infected blood compensation scheme to people who were infected by the end of this year. Payments to the affected are expected to begin in 2025 following a second set of regulations. I understand the disappointment about the regulations being split out. There are important details—especially in consideration of Sir Robert Francis’s recommendations, the majority of which the Government have accepted—that must be worked through ahead of the second set of regulations. This includes details such as eligibility criteria for people who were affected, and an additional autonomy award for those who were the subjects of unethical testing. In answer to the noble Baronesses, Lady Berridge and Lady Featherstone, and my noble friend Lady Keeley, who asked about the timing of payments to those affected, subject to parliamentary approval the Government are aiming for the second set of regulations to be in place by 31 March next year. This will support our intention that payments to affected people begin in 2025. My noble friend Lady Keeley asked about interim payments to estates and whether there will be funding for legal help in obtaining probate. The Government will provide more information on the process of applying for interim payments to estates by the end of this month. We recognise the importance of legal support for applicants who need to obtain probate and will ensure that information is provided when applications open. I hope that what I have said in summing up the debate has offered some reassurances to noble Lords, even if I have not managed to answer all the questions. As I said, a further update will be provided at the end of the year, but I am very happy to meet noble Lords to discuss details in the meantime. If I have not addressed certain specific points, I will ensure that I go back over them when I read through Hansard. As the noble Earl, Lord Howe, said, in some sense this is the start of a process, not the end. It is an incredibly important topic and I thank noble Lords for the time and scrutiny they have given it today. All noble Lords must be acutely aware of the responsibility we all have to ensure that we learn from the truly shocking events described in Sir Brian’s report. I assure your Lordships that the Government take the report extremely seriously and will continue to respond to these vital recommendations.