In a heartbreaking revelation, campaigners for the victims of the UK’s infected blood scandal have disclosed that a mere 10 individuals out of the 4,000 affected have received the compensation they were promised. This comes despite assurances from both the Conservative and Labour parties to resolve the payments by the end of this year.
The survivors of this tragic episode feel utterly disengaged by the current Labour government. By December, only 17 people from the thousands eligible had even been invited to register for compensation. Last week, five groups representing the victims met with officials handling the claims, only to leave with the impression that they were being treated as an annoyance rather than as individuals who have endured immense suffering.
A Scandal with Devastating Consequences
The contaminated blood scandal of the 1970s and 1980s saw around 3,000 people lose their lives after being administered tainted commercial blood products intended for hemophiliacs and blood transfusions. A scathing inquiry report released in May by Sir Brian Langstaff concluded that much of this scandal could have been averted.
While there have been various compensation schemes in the past for the victims, the Langstaff report called for the immediate establishment of a more comprehensive program with increased payouts. However, the reality has fallen far short of these recommendations.
Victims Left in Anguish
Andrew Evans, chair of the group Tainted Blood, who himself contracted HIV at age 12 from a contaminated blood product, expressed the collective relief felt by the community when the inquiry’s final report was published. They dared to hope that their decades-long battle might finally be coming to an end and that compensation would be swiftly forthcoming.
“With the promise that all of the infected would be paid before the end of 2024, followed swiftly in 2025 by the estates of those who have died and affected relatives in their own right, campaigners and the community hoped that the finish line was in sight, and all that remained would be a series of formalities.”
– Andrew Evans, Tainted Blood
But these hopes have been dashed. Evans states that since the report, they have been disengaged by the government, and the goalposts have drastically shifted. Now, on the cusp of Christmas, a mere quarter of one percent of those infected have been offered compensation.
An Ongoing Struggle
Rather than seeing an end to their fight, the campaigners find their battle intensifying. The already deeply traumatized community is at a breaking point. Evans and his fellow campaigners bear the burden of trying to explain the situation to the victims, even though they themselves have little more understanding of what’s happening.
“People are still dying at the rate of two per week as a result of their infections. Lack of progress has real-world implications. By the end of March 2025, the projection is that 250 people will be offered compensation. From the inquiry’s report until then, it’s estimated that another 80 infected people will have died without ever seeing justice.”
– Andrew Evans, Tainted Blood
The length of time it has taken to reach this point means that parents, siblings, and partners of those infected are themselves aging and dying. The campaigners are left wondering what they must do to spur the government into swift and responsible action.
Meetings Fail to Reassure
Clive Efford, chair of the all-party parliamentary group on the scandal, expressed his dismay at meetings held last week. He described them as token gestures that left people feeling more angry than reassured.
“People were treated like children: only one person per organization was able to speak, for a maximum of four minutes. It felt like the meetings were token gestures and only succeeded in making people more angry.”
– Clive Efford, MP
Efford warned that this was an early test for ministers and civil servants to behave with a duty of candor towards victims of state injustices. The publication of the Langstaff report had given campaigners hope that they had won their battle with the state, but they now feel the state is back in charge and ignoring the report’s findings.
Victims in Limbo
Kevin Roberts, 52, from Cornwall, is one of the many victims of the scandal who fears he may never see the compensation he is owed. Infected with hepatitis A, B, and C as a young child, he has faced an uphill battle to even obtain the historical medical records proving his case.
“We think they are going to drip money to us as slowly as possible. I’ve not even been registered as an applicant. I can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
– Kevin Roberts, contaminated blood victim
The government maintains it is determined to deliver justice for the victims after decades of injustice. The Cabinet Office stated that over £1bn in interim payments have been made to those infected and the estates of those who have died. They insist they will continue doing everything possible to deliver justice as swiftly as possible.
However, for the thousands of individuals whose lives have been irrevocably damaged by this scandal, these words ring hollow in the face of the excruciatingly slow pace of compensation. As the years tick by and more victims pass away without ever seeing restitution, the sense of betrayal only deepens.
The contaminated blood scandal represents a shameful chapter in the UK’s history, and the way in which successive governments have handled the aftermath has only compounded the agony for those affected. The victims and their loved ones deserve more than token gestures and broken promises. They deserve swift, comprehensive compensation and an unequivocal acknowledgment of the wrongs done to them. Until that happens, their fight for justice will go on, no matter how weary they may be.
